From youth to mental age, getting restorations done on a cracked, chipped or extracted tooth may seem trivial. A cost to pay. Time to spend in a dentist’s office. Many young adults simply skip over getting the restoration work done because they aren’t in immediate pain and the damage isn’t impacting their ability to bite and chew comfortably at the moment. But putting off dental restorations can cost big in the long term. Dr. Jim Erpenach offers many ways to restore teeth and not break them down. Traditional dentistry uses techniques and procedures that require cutting away healthy tooth structure. Dr. Erpenbach prefers more conservative methods through biomimetic dentistry. By saving as much healthy tooth as possible, the repairs are stronger and will last much longer.
Dr. Erpenbach wants to take every step to ensure a patient can keep their natural teeth. Nature created the greatest tooth structure possible so why destroy it or remove it? When a patient loses an adult tooth that has not been properly restored, the body’s natural response if to begin shifting other teeth in their positions to fill in the empty space. If too many teeth are lost, the patient can end up with unsightly gap teeth and a reduced bite force. This needs to be avoided.
Other possible side effects of tooth loss are the patient will experience bone loss. The jaw bone is nourished based on stimulation of the tooth roots during chewing. When the roots are not stimulated, they withdraw into the bone and cease to contribute to the circulation of nutrients to the bone. Over time, the jaw can actually diminish in size causing problems with alignment and cause or worsen temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJD.)
Aside from brushing and flossing twice daily and getting two professional cleanings a year, the best way to prevent problems down the road is by getting dental restorations at the time they occur. Using biomimetic dentistry from the very beginning of dental care will alleviate costly and possible painful procedures in the future.
To schedule an appointment for a professional cleaning or a consultation about dental restorations, call our office at 865-584-8630.
