Should you Replace a Missing Tooth?
The short answer?- YES! Whether you lost a tooth due to extensive decay where you had no option but to get it removed, had it knocked out when you were younger or sometimes your permanent tooth may not have come in- then replacing it is of utmost importance! The sooner you get a missing tooth replaced the less chances you have of changes to your bite/ occlusion, teeth alignment as well as the general shape and structure of your face.
A lot of people are not really concerned with replacing a missing tooth- they are just happy that the offending tooth is pulled out. But even before you have a tooth removed, your dentist should plan your replacement options. People are more inclined to seek treatment for a missing front tooth because its esthetically not pleasing and very obvious but a missing posterior tooth should be given equal importance! When a tooth has been missing for a long time- there is a shift in the position and angulation of the other teeth around it. Your teeth have a stable position in the arch because they are held in place by the teeth next to them and above/ below them. When you lose a tooth, the other teeth start moving towards the open space. Teeth will start ‘drifting’ into that space either by tilting or rotating and the opposing teeth will start to move upwards/ downwards into the empty area.
The result of such teeth migrations is that the way you bite gets affected and you will subconsciously start eating on the other side of your mouth. Over time- because of an imbalance in the stress distribution, those teeth will be unfairly stressed resulting in bone loss, wearing of teeth, cracks etc. Also the bone in the area where the tooth is missing starts receding resulting in bone loss.
When you have an area where a tooth was supposed to be, it is an easy location for bacteria to get into your gums and cause periodontal disease or even cause decay in the neighbouring tooth. This is an easy way for the infection to spread to tother areas of your mouth and hence you can cause infection in unaffected areas too.
Your teeth and oral structures support your face and when a component of the supporting structure, here, your tooth/teeth is missing then your face has a sunken appearance with an increased incidence of wrinkles and makes you look older than you are. Not replacing a missing tooth is a mistake you are making short term which has long term repercussions. You should replace a missing tooth with a myriad of treatment options that you have so that you don’t have to spend double the money in the future trying to treat the problems which have started due to your negligence!