What to Do if You Lose a Permanent Tooth

Did you know that more than a quarter of adults aged 65 or over have eight or fewer teeth?

There are a number of ways we can lose teeth throughout our lives, whether through injury or decay.

If you lose a permanent tooth, there are some steps you should take straight away, as you may still be able to save the tooth.

The First Steps To Take

If you lose a tooth suddenly, it may still be possible to save it. You’ll need to act quickly; here’s what you should do.

Find Your Tooth

First off, you’ll need to recover your tooth. If it’s fallen out of your mouth, take care when picking it up. Try to handle it only by the crown so that you don’t case any damage to the roots.

Clean It Off

If your tooth has fallen on the floor or onto another surface, it’s going to have picked up some dirt and debris.

You have a few options for what you can use to clean your tooth. You can use water; if possible, try dissolving some salt in the water first. Saline solution acts as a natural disinfectant. You can also use milk as an alternative. If you haven’t dropped it in anything too hideous, you can also try licking it clean as saliva also has some disinfectant properties.

Don’t use soap or other detergents, and make sure not to use anything abrasive.

Put It Back in Place

Once your tooth is clean, you can try to put it back into place.

Do this gently, as you don’t want to damage your gums. If you are able to get your tooth back into the socket, use a small piece of gauze or fabric to bite down on to hold your tooth in place.

Visit The Dentist

The final step is to visit the dentist as soon as possible.

If your dentist isn’t available, you can try visiting an emergency dentist, or visit the emergency room. The tooth will be fixed to the teeth either side of it to hold it in place until it is fully healed.

Options For Replacing a Lost Tooth

If the dentist is unable to save your tooth, you’ll be left with a gap. This will not only be unsightly. The good news is that there are a range of options for dealing with adult tooth loss.

Removable Partial Denture

A removable partial denture is a simple but effective method of tooth replacement.

The replacement tooth or teeth are attached to a plastic or resin base that is colored to match the color of your gums and palate. The denture can easily be put in place, and is simple to remove so that it can be cleaned regularly.

Removable partial dentures are less invasive than some of the other options of adult tooth replacement, and are also a more affordable option.

Tooth Supported Bridge

The teeth adjacent to the missing tooth get filed down in preparation for the bridge. A crown is then fitted across the two teeth either side of the gap, with the replacement tooth held in place by this bridge.

This is a less invasive procedure than dental implants, although it does require reshaping the teeth on either side, so is a little more invasive than a removable partial denture. It’s also more affordable than a dental implant.

Dental Implant

A tooth implant is one of the most common options for replacing a missing tooth.

A metal screw is implanted into your jaw, and it provides the support for your denture. In essence, the implant takes the place of the root of your original tooth. A dental implant is a viable option for most patients, although there are some cases when it won’t be possible.

Dental implants are one of the most effective ways to replace a missing tooth. Once the procedure is completed.You need to be sure you choose a dentist with a good level of experience in dental implants, such as brentwooddentalspa.com.

Implant Supported Bridge

If you have permanent tooth loss across a number of teeth, then an implant supported bridge is a good option.

This involves inserting implants at each end of the row of missing teeth. A bridge of dentures is then attached to these implants. The replacement teeth in between are not attached to any implants, but are held in place by the bridge. It means you only need two implants to support a number of replacement teeth.

Have You Lost a Permanent Tooth?

If you’ve lost a permanent tooth, then hopefully this article has given you some ideas of your options. If you’ve just lost your tooth, follow the steps at the start of the article and be sure to get yourself to a dentist as soon as possible. It may be possible to re-implant your tooth.

If it’s not possible, then you have a range of options to replace the missing tooth. The option you choose will depend on the extent of missing teeth as well as your own personal circumstances. The good news is that it should be possible to get your smile back looking perfect again. For more useful content, please be sure to check out the rest of the site.