There’s a lot to be considered when your dentist works to reverse the effects of your debilitated smile from severe tooth loss. We chose to use the word “debilitated” because not only have you lost the function of your smile, but your appearance has probably been compromised both inside and outside of your mouth. You can tell when patients are missing an extensive amount of teeth by their sunken facial structure.
Luckily, Dr. Bickford and Dr. Shirley can help you restore your smile with custom dentures or partial dentures in Dallas, Ga. By creating a set of dentures, we’re really crafting a natural looking, practical dental solution that’s built to last.
Missing Teeth is Harmful to Your Smile
It doesn’t matter how you lost your teeth—it’s just important to understand that it’s pertinent to your health to replace them. Besides making embarrassing holes in your smile, missing teeth can severely affect the rest of your dental and mental health. Let’s look at which dangers you are facing by missing one or more key components of your smile.
Your jawbone density can deteriorate.
One danger of missing teeth is bone loss. This doesn’t just take place where the tooth once was, but it extends to other areas, putting your other teeth at risk for tooth loss. Missing teeth can cause an unhealthy jawbone and will eventually lead to an aging facial appearance.
Your smile may start to shift.
When there’s a hole in your smile, the remaining teeth will shift overtime. Your remaining teeth could become crooked or overlapping, making it more difficult to clean. This could lead to tooth decay, cavities, or even dental diseases. Your bite could also change and you may need assistance from an orthodontic treatment to realign your teeth.
You will have to change your eating habits.
The loss of even a single tooth can greatly affect your eating habits. Patients dealing with these problems tend to eat easily chewable, digestible, and high-processed foods. Basically, you’re more at risk for food-induced health diseases because these foods are lower in nutritional value.
Your confidence could suffer.
Sometimes, some patients experience difficulties just speaking normally, especially if they are missing a front tooth. This can negatively affect how you feel about yourself and your ability to present yourself confidently.
Understanding Dentures or Partial Dentures
If you’ve lost more than just a few teeth, finding a fitting tooth replacement is probably top on your priority list. But you may not consider them a viable option if you’re not one of our mature patients. Although our older patients tend to make perfect candidates for this type of dental restoration, dentures can also benefit a lot of other patients as well. Dentures are a terrific way to replace several teeth or even a whole row. Let’s take a look at both types of prosthetics to see which is better for you.
Full (complete) dentures
A full set of dentures are prosthetic teeth attached to a gum-colored base. These can be used to restore your ability to speak clearly, eat the foods you enjoy, and smile with confidence again. These dentures are ideal for major tooth loss.
Partial dentures
Partial dentures are used to fill the spaces in your smile. If you have missing teeth in different areas of your mouth, a partial denture can be created like the perfect fitting puzzle piece to complete your smile. There are different options for how your partial dentures can be placed to be removable or attached permanently.
Contact Distinctive Dentistry
Dentures are sometimes a great option for anyone missing several teeth, but we also have other restorative options that may work better for you. The best way to find out what’s best for your smile is to meet with our dental experts for a consultation. If you need to explore restorative dentistry options to help revitalize your smile, you should contact our office.
