If you notice a loose tooth, don’t wait! Call your dentist ASAP. That loose tooth may be in danger of being lost or damaged permanently—and you won’t know if that’s true without having the tooth examined.
To understand why, let’s first consider how your teeth are normally held in place—and contrary to popular belief, it’s not primarily through the bone. The actual mechanism is a form of gum tissue called the periodontal ligament attaching the tooth to the bone. This ligament secures teeth in place through tiny collagen fibers that attach to both the tooth and bone.
The periodontal ligament can effectively secure a tooth while still allowing for some movement. However, these ligaments can come under attack from periodontal (gum) disease, a bacterial infection primarily caused by dental plaque. Without aggressive treatment, the infection can destroy these tissues, causing them to eventually detach from the teeth.
This can result in loose teeth, which is, in fact, a late sign of advanced gum disease. As such, it’s a definite alarm bell that you’re in imminent danger of losing the teeth in question.
Treating a gum infection with accompanying loose teeth often has two components. First, we want to stop the infection and begin the healing process by removing any and all plaque and tartar (hardened plaque) on tooth surfaces. This includes deposits below the gum line or around the roots of the tooth, which may require surgery to access them.
Second, we want to help stabilize any loose teeth while we’re treating the infection, which can take time. We do this by using various methods from doing a bite adjustment of individual teeth tat are getting hit harder when you put your teeth together to splinting loose teeth to healthier neighboring teeth. We may also employ splinting when the tooth is loose for other reasons like trauma. This provides a loose tooth with needed stability while the gums and bone continue to heal and reattach.
Securing a loose tooth and treating the underlying cause isn’t something you should put off. The sooner we address it, the more likely you won’t lose your tooth.
If you would like more information on permanent teeth that become loose, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “When Permanent Teeth Become Loose.”