Adult teeth are permanent and are also designed to last for a lifetime. Adults are always alert when they notice any loose tooth.
Some of the causes of teeth loosening are harmless. However, some requires dental professional care to save the tooth, replace it with an implant, or remove it.
Causes of a loose tooth in an adult
The following factors are often responsible for your tooth loosening:
Gum disease
This disease is also known as periodontitis. It involves infection and inflammation of the gums, which is normally caused by poor dental hygiene.
When brushing and flossing you may not able to remove plaque, thus this can facilitate development of a gum disease. Plaque contains bacteria that stick to your teeth. They harden over time and only dental professional can remove it.
The plague causes the gum to pull away from your teeth and create gaps. If this process continues it breaks down the tissue and bone supporting your teeth causing them to become loose.
Other symptoms of gum disease include:
Gums becomes red, tender, swollen or painful
Bleeding when brushing
Recession of the gum
Changes in the way the teeth fit together
Pregnancy
When the level of progesterone and estrogen rises during pregnancy, it can affect tissues and bones in your mouth.
When you have more of these hormones, can alter the periodontium. This is a collection of ligaments and bones that support your teeth and keep them in place. Thus, this causes your teeth to feel loosen.
However, these changes in your teeth will resolve after pregnancy.
Injury to the teeth
Healthy teeth are strong, but injuries sustained as a result of contact either in sports or accidents may loosen your teeth. This is because it can damage your teeth and surrounding tissues.
Likewise, grinding your teeth at night or clenching them when you have stress can cause them to wear down the tissues around them.
Majority of the people are not aware of their grinding or clenching habits until they experience jaw pain. Seeking dentist advice may help you to detect the problem before your tooth is permanently damaged.
Osteoporosis
This is a disease that causes your bones to weaken and become porous. As a result minor impacts and bumps can lead to broken bones. Although, osteoporosis affects mostly the hips, wrists, and spine it can also damage your bones in the jaw that support your teeth.
Treatment for a loose tooth
The best option of treatment will depend on the cause of the looseness of your tooth. They include the following:
Root planning and scaling: This is a deep cleaning procedure that treats and assists to reverse gum disease.
Surgery. The objective is to remove inflamed gum bone and tissue that has been damage by gum disease.
Bone grafts: These helps to rebuild bone lost due to gum disease.
Soft tissue or gum grafts. These prevent further tooth or gum loss when you have a gum disease.
Dental implant: This involves fixing an artificial root and tooth which is connected to the jawbone.
Dental bridge: This is a type of crown that fits over your teeth on either side of the missing tooth.
Dental appliance for example bites splints. This reduces the damage caused from grinding and also helps the mouth to heal after dental surgery.
Outlook
Loose tooth can be alarming for an adult. Nevertheless, the tooth can be saved especially when the problem is detected at early stages.
If the tooth is removed or lost, a number of restorative methods can be used to give the appearance of a natural tooth.
Edited by: Jessa (Feb. 19, 2019)
