Restoring your smile can mean a lot of different things, all of which depend on what’s wrong with it. For example, restoring a tooth that has a cavity isn’t the same as repairing a tooth that has a fracture or break in its structure. In most cases, however, restoring your smile means avoiding the loss of one or more teeth by addressing your oral health concern with customized treatment. For some teeth, this isn’t possible, and restoring your smile could mean extracting the tooth so that it doesn’t continue threatening the rest of your oral health.
What tooth extraction means for your smile
Tooth extraction isn’t the typical answer to most oral health concerns. Once the procedure is completed, the tooth will no longer be present, and its absence can have several negative long-term impacts on your oral health. However, if the procedure is necessary, it means that the tooth in question is not just compromised, but severely enough that it poses a threat to the rest of your oral health. Much of that threat stems from the fact that the condition is too extreme for your dentist to restore the tooth and preserve its remaining healthy, natural structure.
When to consider extracting a tooth
Tooth extraction can be recommended for a number of different specific problems with your tooth structure. For instance, one of the more common reasons for needing it is the impaction of one or more wisdom teeth, or third molars. If the molars become impacted before they erupt, then extracting them will prevent them from causing extensive damage to the dental ridge and the rest of your smile. Other reasons may include damage to your tooth structure that’s so severe the tooth can’t support a restoration, or a tooth infection that erodes the majority of your tooth’s healthy, natural structure.
What should you do to preserve your smile?
If a tooth has to be extracted, then doing so as soon as possible is the best way to mitigate any harm it can cause to the rest of your smile and oral health. However, the loss of the tooth can continue to impact your oral health if it isn’t addressed. For many patients who require tooth extraction, the best treatment plan includes a solution for replacing the extracted tooth as soon as possible. This can often be best accomplished with a dental implant supported crown.
Learn if restoring your smile requires tooth extraction
If a tooth is compromised in a way that makes restoring it impossible, then the rest of your smile may benefit from having the tooth extracted as soon as possible. To learn more, schedule an appointment by calling MMC Dental in Houston, TX, today at (713) 926-8896.