Home » Misc » My teeth are falling out what should i do

My teeth are falling out what should i do


What to Do When A Tooth Falls Out

Losing a tooth can be extremely upsetting. Not only does it impact the way your smile looks, but tooth loss can also impact your speech, diet, and overall oral function.

Knowing what to do when you knock out a tooth or have a dental-related injury is crucial to saving your tooth and avoiding painful infections. Better yet, you can take steps today to prevent tooth loss before it occurs in the first place.

Reasons That Teeth Fall Out

Teeth fall out for a variety of reasons. The two most common are periodontal disease and traumatic injuries.

Periodontal disease is a condition caused by plaque, tartar and bacteria around the tooth, which then infect the gums. Over time the gums “detach” and create “pockets” around the root of the tooth. The deeper the pocket, the more challenging the area is to clean on your own. At the same time, the underlying bone will begin to shrink away (resorb) due to inflammation caused by the bacterial infection. Gum disease is best treated as early as possible.

Traumatic injuries, on the other hand, tend to pop up when you least expect them. After all, anyone can fall, get bumped in the mouth, or have an accident from time to time.  If you know you’re more “at-risk” because of contact sports and similar hobbies, you should know that orofacial injuries are some of the most common that athletes will experience.

How to Protect Your Teeth

Fortunately, gum disease is usually preventable through good home care, daily flossing, and routine preventative visits at our Ottawa dentist’s office. We’ll regularly measure your attachment levels around each tooth to identify areas that show signs of early infection or detachment. By intercepting gum issues sooner, you can intervene to prevent bone loss and periodontal disease. Once the infection evolves into a severe state, preventing tooth mobility (and loss) becomes much more challenging.

Although not all traumatic injuries are preventable (such as car wrecks or slipping on an icy surface) you can lower your risk of sports-related injuries by wearing a protective mouthguard. Sports mouthguards that are custom moulded to your teeth provide the best level of protection. Why? Because they’re uniquely fitted to each of your teeth and less likely to come out of place when you need them the most. That way if there’s a secondary injury — such as getting hit during a game and then falling — it’s less likely to come out. A protective mouthguard can significantly lower your risk of:

  • Broken teeth
  • Knocked-out teeth
  • Concussions
  • Lip and cheek lacerations

 

What to Do to Prevent Permanent Adult Tooth Loss

Adult tooth loss isn’t nearly as common today as it was a few generations ago. Today’s adults have access to better preventative dental care than ever. Even if you weren’t lucky enough to have grown up with regular dental checkups, the therapies available for the modern dental patient mean that it’s possible to keep your teeth healthy for life.

The most important thing to do to prevent the loss of permanent adult teeth is to see our Ottawa dentist for routine checkups and cleanings. We’ll identify risk factors that you need to be aware of, provide preventative therapies to reduce your risk of disease, and talk to you about simple steps to reduce damage to your smile. Even if you’ve never had dental problems in the past, the best way to keep it that way is to schedule a preventative care appointment.

Emergency Steps to Save your Tooth

For knocked-out teeth, you’ll need to act quickly. First and foremost, don’t touch the tooth by the root, as you could potentially damage the microscopic fibres that aid in reattachment. Second, gently rinse away any visible debris. If possible, place the tooth back into your socket but do not force it into place.

Otherwise, store the tooth in a sealed container and completely submerge it in milk, or saline. If none of those are available you may stick the tooth under your tongue, but don’t swallow it.

Knocked-out teeth need to be treated by a dentist within 1-2 hours. Call us immediately. If possible we will attempt to reinsert the tooth or bond any broken fragments back into place. However, if there is nerve damage involved, you may require endodontic treatment to save the tooth.

Missing Tooth Replacement Options

Losing a tooth creates excess space in your bite. Even if the open area isn’t visible or causing cosmetic concerns, it can impact the overall alignment of your entire smile. It’s like taking one book off of a bookshelf and watching the other books tilt to the side. The same thing can happen to our smiles. In time, surrounding teeth will begin to drift out of place. Opposing teeth may also “super-erupt” in an attempt to find a biting partner. So even if the missing tooth is located in the back of your mouth, your front teeth can be impacted.

To prevent changes in tooth alignment, it’s best to replace your missing tooth as soon as possible. That way you’re able to preserve natural spacing and function on an overall basis.

Some of the most popular Ottawa tooth replacement treatments include dental implants, fixed bridges, and removable partial dentures. Implants are the preferred line of treatment, in that they’re permanent and non-invasive to your adjacent teeth. We’ll review the best options with you given your situation so that you can make an informed decision about your smile’s future.

In Pain? Broken Tooth? Call Now!

Parkdale Dental Centre offers comprehensive family and emergency dentistry for all ages. If you’re in pain, have a knocked-out tooth, or need to see a dentist because of some type of traumatic injury, we encourage you to call. Our team will arrange to see you as soon as possible and offer guidance on the best steps to take until you can get to our office.

Contact us today! Same-day appointments may be available.

What to Do If You Lose a Tooth As an Adult (Madison, WI)

What to Do If You Lose a Tooth As an Adult

Tips to Prevent Permanent Tooth Loss

If you’ve had a permanent tooth fall out, follow these steps from Total Care Dental to prevent permanent damage to your mouth.

  • Recover your tooth - Do NOT grab the root. While it may be difficult, make sure to only handle the crown part of your lost tooth to avoid any additional damage.

  • Rinse the tooth - Use water, milk or a saline solution to clean off the tooth. If using saline, make sure it is sterile. Do not wipe or scrub the tooth, just gently rinse off the root and crown.

  • Reinsert your tooth into the empty socket - Putting your tooth back in may work and at the very least will keep the root protected. Hold the tooth in place by gently biting down on medical gauze or soft fabric. The pressure will keep your tooth from moving too much. Still see a dentist or doctor if you've successfully reinserted your tooth. 

  • Protect the tooth - If reinsertion doesn’t work, keep the tooth in a glass of milk or saline solution. Water will not preserve your tooth. If you don’t have any milk or saline solution, place the tooth in your mouth between your cheek and gums.

  • Go to a dentist or ER- The faster you get to a dentist, the better chance you have of restoring your tooth. In the event a dentist is unavailable, go to an emergency room. Bring your tooth with you so they may try reinsertion.

Schedule a Consultation

What Happens if a Permanent Tooth Falls Out?

Losing a tooth as an adult can be an incredibly stressful experience. Your tooth can fall out from decay in the root or an accidental sports injury. 

A lost tooth isn’t just bad for your smile, it's bad for your oral health. An empty socket in the gums is at high risk for infection, and the teeth nearest to the gap may shift to “fill in.” Losing multiple teeth only increases the potential long-term damage to your mouth. Our team of dentists in Madison can help keep your teeth healthy and in their proper place.

How to Protect Your Teeth

One of the most common ways adults lose teeth is through sports accidents. Tackling, tumbling, or roughhousing can lead to an accidental hit to the jaw. Always use a mouthguard while participating in contact sports. Teeth can also fall out as a result of trauma, from car accidents or even tripping on the ground.

If your tooth was not knocked out completely and feels “loose,” visit your dentist as soon as possible. An adult loose tooth may be a sign of root decay or infection. The sooner you have your dental problems assessed by our Madison dentists, the sooner your mouth can get back to normal. If possible, avoid eating during this time to keep your tooth from falling out or being swallowed.

Use healthy dental habits to prevent losing a tooth from decay. Brush twice daily, floss at least once a day and schedule regular checkups with Total Care Dental to prevent tooth loss. If your lost tooth is too damaged or reinsertion does not work, our restorative dental implants will bring back the smile you know and love and keep your mouth healthy. After restorative work is finished, you may want some cosmetic procedures to ensure your new smile looks great.

If your child loses an adult tooth, follow the same steps as above and bring them to a dentist right away. There is a greater chance for children’s mouths to recover completely if the tooth is reinserted correctly.

Have you lost a tooth and need dental assistance? Contact Total Care Dental in Madison.

Back To Blog

What to do if a tooth falls out

Edentulism or, more simply, tooth loss is manifested in children and the elderly, however, it can take you by surprise even at a young age. The reason for this may be various diseases of the body, which will negatively affect the quality of life. The loss of even one tooth carries with it the consequences associated with subsidence of the jaw, changes in facial features and impaired diction. To avoid this, it is necessary to consult a dentist in time. A well-designed treatment plan will include procedures to eliminate the causes that affect tooth loss.

The main causes of tooth loss

It is possible to avoid a large-scale problem associated with the loss of a large number of natural teeth if it is possible to establish the cause of this process. Consider the most common causes of edentulism.

The presence of chronic diseases associated with pathologies of the thyroid gland, heart, diabetes mellitus.

Features in nutrition, which are reflected in the frequent use of especially hard foods. This diet leads to a split in the enamel, which in turn leads to a violation of the structure of the tooth, accelerating the carious process. It can also be caused by a diet consisting of soft foods. In this case, atrophy of the alveolar process occurs. In addition, due to the lack of solid food, the gums are deprived of massage, which disrupts blood circulation inside them. When chewing, give an even load on the entire jaw, without retaining food exclusively on one side. As an alternative to hard crackers and nuts, it is recommended to dilute meals with fresh vegetables and fruits, which have optimal firmness. Also, in the absence of allergies and intolerances, the use of dairy products, and in particular hard cheese, creates a nourishing and protective film on the surface of the enamel.

The cause of tooth loss may be an injury resulting from mechanical damage during a fall or impact.

    Improperly organized oral hygiene is a violation of the dentist's recommendations regarding the process of brushing teeth, which contributes to the development of diseases of the teeth and oral cavity. This item is the most common, since for most people care consists solely of brushing their teeth twice a day. Such manipulations are not enough to avoid the development of dental diseases. Complete oral hygiene includes cleansing all surfaces inside the oral cavity: teeth and mucous membranes. This will require not only a toothbrush, but also auxiliary items such as dental floss, rinse aid and a tongue brush. Thanks to these tools, cleansing is more thorough, so the reproduction of pathogenic microbes between the teeth and under the gums is minimized. Otherwise, the accumulated plaque becomes a stone, the removal of which is possible only in the dentist's office. Such deposits are the causes of caries and inflammatory processes that provoke tooth loss.

    Bad habits in the form of smoking and frequent alcohol consumption negatively affect the immune system, which provokes the development of infectious diseases.

    The most common factor that leads to tooth loss between the ages of 20 and 35 is chronic periodontitis. This disease is expressed in inflammation of the gums, which weaken the dental ligament. Among the complications of this disease include periodontitis, in the event of which the teeth begin to loosen.

    Without timely treatment of caries, the tooth crown is destroyed. In this case, the dentist removes and requires mandatory prosthetics.

    What to do if a tooth falls out

    As a result of a tooth falling out, you need to see a dentist as soon as possible. There are at least two reasons for this: you will take measures to prevent further development of the problem, and you will also be able to save on the restoration of a lost tooth. The savings lies in the fact that when performing prosthetics immediately after the loss of a tooth, the alveolar bone does not lend itself to dystrophic changes due to a long period of adentia, thus the patient does not have to pay for bone grafting. A timely appeal to the dentist will help to exclude the development of diseases against the background of which the loss of molars occurs.

    Treatment for tooth loss

    To minimize the risk of tooth loss, the following recommendations should be followed:

    • avoid excessive drinking and smoking;
    • use the recommended toothpaste and brush for oral hygiene;
    • adhere to a balanced diet, maintaining a balance between hard and soft foods;
    • visit the dentist's office for routine check-ups at least twice a year;
    • do not abuse or refuse super-solid foods;
    • timely treatment of gums and teeth;
    • carry out activities to strengthen the immune system;
    • observe complete oral hygiene by cleaning teeth and mucous membranes.

    The main thing in case of tooth loss that has already begun is to take all necessary measures that will stop this process. Methods are determined in each case individually in accordance with the cause that influenced the loss of teeth. First aid after tooth loss can be obtained at the Happy Smile Family Dentistry Center. Experienced doctors will relieve inflammation, as well as carry out a number of procedures that will not allow the process of prolapse to progress. Once the cause of tooth loss is established, restoration can begin. To find out the cost, terms and get advice, contact us at the indicated numbers or leave a request for a call back.

    causes and treatment - ROOTT

    Main causes How to treat? Prevention Where to go?

    Toothless smiles of small children seem charming to us. With adults, the situation is different. Lack of teeth not only spoils the smile, it greatly reduces the quality of life. Loss of teeth changes diction, leads to a violation of the oval of the face. Food is not chewed to the full, problems with the gastrointestinal tract and defects in the jaw joints develop. Loss of teeth can lead to social isolation, depression, neurological disorders.

    Why do teeth fall out? The reasons are different, from injuries to inflammatory diseases of the oral cavity.

    6 reasons why adult teeth fall out

    1. Periodontitis (or parodontosis)

    Our teeth are not just a root in the gum and a crown part on top. The tooth is surrounded by supporting ligaments, tissues, cementum. Healthy tissues securely hold the tooth in the alveolus. It performs all its functions to the fullest.

    Poor oral hygiene contributes to the accumulation of bacterial plaque. From there, microbes enter the gums and cause inflammation. Periodontitis (periodontal disease) develops. In this case, partial or complete resorption of the supporting structures occurs. Pathological tooth mobility develops. Periodontitis and tooth loss are closely related, and in fact periodontal diseases are 11th most common in the world [1] .

    2. Caries

    The plaque that remains on the teeth after eating gradually destroys the tooth enamel, reaches the next layer - the dentin, and then the pulp (the base of the tooth). Running caries causes inflammation of the tissues around the root - periodontitis. Fistulas, cysts, and granulomas may form. The result is loosening and loss of teeth. Caries and periodontal disease are the main factors that lead to partial or complete adentia (lack of teeth).

    3. Injuries

    Lost healthy teeth? AT 20% of cases [2] Accidents are to blame: accidents, falls from bicycles, sports injuries. The World Health Organization refers to injuries and malocclusion [2] . It also serves to loosen, and hence the risk of tooth loss.

    4. General diseases

    When teeth fall out, the disease that provokes this may not be dental, but general (diabetes, lupus). Any autoimmune disease lowers the immune system, turning a small amount of inflammation into a major problem.

    5. Wrong diet

    To stay strong, dental tissue needs nutrients. Calcium, potassium, vitamins D and C, phosphorus, fluorine affect the condition of the teeth. Lack of vitamins and minerals weakens tissues. Food rich in sugars, acids and carbohydrates leads to the same result.

    6. Bad habits

    First up is smoking. Male smokers lose their teeth by 3.6 times [3] more often than non-smokers. Women - 2.5 times . [3] Smoking provokes periodontal disease, also masks the symptoms, bringing the disease to severe stages.

    Second is bruxism. Most often, people grind their teeth in their sleep without even knowing it. Enamel is erased, caries or periodontal disease develops.

    There are more than 6 reasons why teeth fall out, but the rest are not so common. You can’t stay without teeth for a long time, over time, a deficiency of bone tissue will develop, so before removing it, you need to immediately think about restoration. There are also rare diseases that can lead to tooth loss.

    What to do if you lose teeth

    Ideally, avoid this state. But if your tooth falls out or at least begins to stagger, you should immediately contact your dentist.

    He will diagnose, consider all symptoms, and begin treatment to prevent the loss of other teeth or keep the loose one.

    Only a doctor can determine the disease due to which the teeth fall out and prescribe the appropriate treatment.

    Treatment

    Medical intervention is carried out in two directions. Physician's task:

    1. Prevent further tooth loss
    2. Restore dentition

    In the first case, treatment depends on the diagnosis. This includes professional teeth cleaning and drug therapy, and remineralization (replenishing the lack of minerals).

    The second direction is prosthetics. What threatens the loss of teeth, we discussed at the beginning of the article. Therefore, the task of the dentist is to restore the chewing function and the aesthetics of the smile. It is solved using:

    • Fixed prosthetics

    Bridges visually restore the dentition, but in reality they cannot evenly distribute the masticatory load. They are recommended to be installed in the absence of 1-2 units. In addition, in order to put a bridge, the adjacent teeth are depulped (the nerve is removed), depriving them of nutrition.

    • Removable prosthetics

    Removable dentures are used mainly in the absence of several or all teeth, and braces, in the presence of at least 6 good ones. If there are not enough upper teeth, then lamellar prostheses are quite firmly fixed due to suction to the upper palate. On the lower jaw, you often have to use a special cream.

    • Implantation

    This is the only method that is as close as possible to natural teeth. The load on the implant stimulates metabolic processes and blood flow in the tissues. The bone tissue remains firm, keeping the oval of the face and the youthfulness of the smile. The load on the chewing teeth is evenly distributed. Well-chewed food does not irritate the mucous membranes. In addition, any type of prosthetics is applicable on implants.

    Prevention

    To keep healthy teeth as long as possible, you need to eliminate the causes of loss. To do this, it is enough to follow simple rules:

    • brush your teeth thoroughly but gently;
    • use dental floss;
    • regularly carry out professional teeth cleaning;
    • visit a doctor at least once every 6 months;
    • give up bad habits;
    • establish a balanced diet;
    • use protective mouth guards during training or extreme entertainment to avoid situations in which the tooth falls out once and for all.

    Where to go if your teeth start to fall out

    In a clinic with a strong diagnostic base and experienced doctors. Do not chase low cost, but check:

    • what equipment is used to make a diagnosis;
    • whether there are certificates for materials and consumables;
    • qualified doctors.

    MCDI ROOTT has diagnostic, therapeutic, surgical and implantation departments. Experts from different fields work in one place, exchanging experience and solving problems in a complex. Each department uses modern equipment and innovative technologies. Membership in the European Open Society of Dentists contributes to this.

    The clinic has a customer support service, where you can contact with any question.

    Learn more