Benefits and Risks of Full Mouth Reconstruction
If you suffer from many oral health issues, missing teeth, or bone atrophy, then it’s time to consider full mouth reconstruction to restore your smile and overall health. You deserve to eat, drink, laugh, and live your life without the pain and discomfort of poor oral health, but no surgery or procedure is without its risk.
At Dr. Andrew G. Mortensen practice in Fountain Valley, CA, we have an accredited team of experts to guide you through full mouth reconstruction so that you feel safe, secure, and ready for this life-changing procedure. Full mouth reconstruction plans are tailored for each patient because everyone has their own unique oral health struggles.
Here are some of the main benefits and risks of full mouth reconstruction.
Benefit: Replace Missing Teeth
Missing teeth can stop a person from going after jobs, keep them from dating, and impact their confidence and overall quality of life. Missing teeth also affect the surrounding teeth, leading to discomfort, pain, and more widespread tooth loss.
Benefit: Stop Jawbone Deterioration
Without tooth roots to stimulate the jawbone, the body begins to filter nutrients to other parts. Lack of nutrition causes the jawbones to break down. Calcium and phosphorus in the bone itself are directed to other parts of the body. Jawbone degeneration can impact the shape of your face and your ability to speak, and it can also age your appearance by decades.
Benefit: Relieve Pressure on Jaw Joints
When teeth are missing or worn down, the correct fit of the upper and lower teeth when the mouth is closed can become unbalanced. We call this relationship occlusion and when it is out of alignment, we say a patient has malocclusion.
As facial muscles adjust the jaws to a more balanced position, jaw joints may become stressed. Nerves get irritated. The result is pain in the head, neck, face, and even tingling in the extremities. Full mouth reconstruction can correct occlusion to give jaw joints and surrounding tissues much-needed relief.
Risk: Oral Infections
If oral surgery is part of your full mouth reconstruction, the surgical procedure(s) have certain risks. Talk with Dr. Mortensen at our Fountain Valley practice about your general health and medications prior to oral surgery.
Risk: Artificial Tooth Breakage
A full mouth reconstruction doesn’t mean you’re done with dentistry for the rest of your life. The restorations require just as much care and maintenance as your natural teeth. Without proper oral hygiene, the replacement crowns, implants, and veneers can fail, leading to broken teeth and infections.
Risk: Increased Chance for Root Canal Therapy (RCT)
Though it’s unlikely, there’s always a chance that a crown might become loose enough for bacteria to enter the natural tooth beneath the restoration. In that moist, dark, warm environment, bacteria flourish. If the tooth becomes infected internally, the only treatment that may save it from total failure is root canal therapy.
Risks of Continued Poor Oral Health
Undergoing full mouth reconstruction is a big decision because dental treatments carry a certain amount of risk. But the reality is, your health may face far greater risks without the surgery. Gum disease, for instance, has been linked to heart attack, stroke, and diabetes complications. The bacteria that cause cavities, left to proliferate, can enter the bloodstream and cause health problems.
If you’re ready to take control of your oral health, call our Fountain Valley office at (714) 964-4183 or send us a message online to schedule your consultation.