Why Didn’t my Dentist Tell me This? Or What Happened to My Bone!

The extraction site will typically heal after a tooth is removed.  The bone, however, will begin to wither away.  40-60% of the bone that once surrounded the root of a tooth will waste away from the area within the first three years after an extraction and the bone loss will continue at a rate of about 1% per year for life.

Another hidden danger of tooth loss involves the sinuses.  If too much bone is lost in the upper posterior tooth areas there is a greater chance that the sinus will expand into—and hollow out– the remaining bone.

Once a tooth is extracted, many patients will often wait too long before deciding upon remedial dental work which often leads to additional procedures and expense.  For example, instead of having a simple bone preservation graft at the time a tooth is extracted, the patient decides to wait and then requires a much more extensive and expensive block or sinus graft. The best time to discuss long term consequences of tooth loss with your dentist is before the extraction.

• Guided Dental Implant Surgery–Advantages for Implant Supported Bridges, Crowns, and Dentures
• All on Four, Teeth in a Day, & Teeth in a Hour–Uses and Abusess
• Should I save My Teeth? Dental Implants, Bone Loss, and Smiles
• Implant Supported Bridge to Avoid Dentures–Case in Carol Stream, Warrenville
• Health Hazards of Tooth Loss and Long-Term Denture Use