preparing for unpredictable dental injuries

Posted on: 20 January 2015

Many people are living with severely worn teeth, advanced gum disease, and chronic TMD pain in the jaw because they think that their condition is too severe to be repaired. Full mouth reconstruction is a process that involves your general dentist, oral surgeons, and specialists like periodontists, orthodontists, and endodontists to completely rebuild your smile. Here is an explanation of the procedures that are involved in a full mouth reconstruction to solve virtually any problem that you are having with your teeth, gums, and jaw.

Contouring, Bridges, and Implants

One of the most important ways that a full mouth reconstruction corrects your smile is by correcting the spacing and shape of your teeth. To do this, a dentist will perform a procedure known as dental contouring, or tooth reshaping. The dentist from sites like http://www.waldendentistry.com will first take an x-ray of your teeth to examine the thickness of the enamel and make sure the pulp is healthy. He or she will then use a pen to mark off sections of enamel that need to be sanded, and use a small sanding instrument to carefully file away the enamel. This can correct teeth that are worn, chipped, or oddly shaped.

In addition to shaping your existing teeth, the dentist will replace any teeth that you have lost. The dentist has several tooth replacement methods available. The most common types of tooth replacements are overdentures or full dentures, which are used when you have very few or no teeth remaining. The dentist can also offer partial dentures, which attach to your existing teeth with a metal clip and rest on your gum to replace small sections of missing teeth.

Dental implants and fixed bridges are stronger, more permanent, and more natural-looking options to replace your teeth. Implants are fixed into the jawbone with a titanium screw that sticks out of the gums to hold a porcelain or ceramic crown. Fixed bridges consist of a row of dental crowns that are attached to the healthy teeth on either side of the gap to permanently replace multiple missing teeth.

Soft Tissue or Bone Grafts

If you have suffered from advanced periodontitis, or gum disease, you may have lost a lot of soft periodontal tissue and parts of your jawbone. Periodontitis is a bacterial infection that causes the tissue and bone around the roots of your tooth to become inflamed and erode away. Over time, this can cause teeth to fall out, and an oral surgeon will need to correct this tissue and bone loss before your teeth can be replaced.

For soft tissue loss in the gums, a strip of gingival tissue is typically grafted from the roof of the mouth to support the roots of your teeth. In some cases, the surgeon may choose to perform a pedicle graft instead, where adjacent healthy gum tissue is used to cover exposed roots. While tissue grafting is usually done to cover exposed roots and prevent tooth loss, implants will usually be necessary if you have lost enough of the jawbone that a bone graft is required. The jawbone behind the molars, in the upper jaw, and in the chin are common donor sites for the bone graft.

Orthognathic Surgery

Orthognathic surgery is also known as reconstructive jaw surgery. This type of surgery is performed in situations where the top and bottom teeth do not align properly, i.e., a severe underbite, overbite, crossbite, or open bite. Orthognathic surgery typically involves removing slivers of the jawbone and using screws, plates, and wires to close the gap so that the jaw is realigned in the proper direction.

No matter how bad the condition of your teeth, gums, and jaw is, you should never live with chronic pain or a smile that you are not happy with. Talk to your dentist about the options for full mouth reconstruction so that you can take your first steps toward a happier, healthier smile.