Do you think that tooth loss only affects your smile? Tooth loss impacts you much more than just your smile. It can gradually lead to neighboring teeth drifting away from their places along with causing difficulty in pronouncing, chewing and deteriorating your periodontal tissues. However, one of the most significant issues caused by tooth loss which is often ignored is bone loss.
It is possible for you to lose as much as 25% of the bone mass tissue under empty space of missing tooth in just one year.
Once the tooth extraction has been done, the periodontist may place the bone grafting material in the empty space. He will then stitch the gum tissue on the bone graft which will help in healing and promoting new bone growth near the graft. The bone graft will help in preventing excess bone loss in short term but for a long term solution, you need to get dental implants.
The bone grafts not only help in reducing the bone loss, they also serve the purpose of supporting the implants. If you have a thinner bone, the implant may not be placed safely or it may fail. Thus, it is imperative to perform bone grafting before the implant procedure. The procedure involves relocating the bone matter from other part of the body to your jaw.
The grafting material will join the existing bone and stimulate new bone growth which creates a strong foundation for implant. It may take few months for the graft to heal completely.
Bone grafts when accompanied by implants prevent the deterioration of gum tissues where the missing tooth used to be. Bone grafts make it easier to keep your gum healthy and take further care of them with the help of proper hygiene.
It is important to get bone grafts in place of missing tooth as, if you lose many teeth and your bone matter deteriorates, it can even change the shape of your face.