The first thing people think about are the aesthetic effects of missing teeth. A healthy smile can go a long way and having gaps in your mouth can influence how we feel in social situations. The very obvious initial effects of missing teeth can be profoundly psychological, but the less obvious, ongoing effects of tooth loss can continue, even after the initial loss of a tooth or teeth.
Tooth loss continues to be a problem for the jaw, because of the effect of tooth loss on bones. Teeth stimulate the jaw bone. The jaw bone is reliant on this interplay between teeth, gums and bone to maintain it’s form and density. Similar to how inactivity can result in bone loss and eventual problems when we are older, it’s the same for the jaw.
The teeth make ongoing contact with each other all through the course of the day, these little interactions stimulate the periodontal ligament, in which each tooth is suspended, and this in turn tells the surrounding bone to remodel and ultimately strengthen itself in response.
In just the first year after tooth loss there can be as much as a 25% decrease in the bone width in the space near a missing tooth. This can lead to up to 4 millimeters’ worth of bone height in the years to follow. Loss in bone width leads to loss in bone height which can start causing problems with chewing and speaking. Further tooth loss can also often be the results because of the surrounding gum areas becoming weaker. Further tooth loss often leads to further functional problems which simply perpetuates the problem.
With time the actual jaw bone can melt away, which can result in the face partially collapsing, causing facial deformation, causing further aesthetic issues.
