Post extraction questions

[jasmith]

Hi guys,

Had an upper molar out yesterday, ouch. I believe it is healing well, the dentist put stitches in the wound and it has stopped bleeding, virtually no pain.. a little sore though when I move my mouth.

Now this tooth is gone, it was the first big molar on the upper side, so it was quite an important tooth, the tooth was removed in an emergency procedure so there was no prior planning as to what will happen after. I understand I have a few options as a replacement to the tooth but sadly all of them can be quite costly.

My first question is, if I was to leave the empty space for the time being, how much time would I roughly have before I started noticing it cause a negative impact on my other teeth?

My second is, I'm only 27 so having a major tooth missing at this age seems like a bad thing to have, as I still have much chewing and eating to do in my life. What is the best solution if I was to replace it? I'm assuming it would be an implant but they are of course very costly right? Is a bridge available for just one tooth or do you need others? Or would a simple denture suffice? I know these are questions for a dentist but I was just wondering what the general opinion of this matter is.

I would also consider leaving it, providing it didn't have any massive impact on my dental health, although I'm sure it almost certainly will.

 

[StefyS]

Hello,

I'm not a dentist but I'm going to be going through something very similar soon. I need my upper 1st and 2nd Molars out and my lower 1st Molar out on the same side.

I have always been told that the lower 1st molar is the one that does really need to be replaced but this is all personal preference. My mother in law has quite a few teeth missing on one side and she has said that teeth shift but it hasn't stopped her eating what she wants. She has said she can even eat an apple on that side now.

Most people choose to have missing teeth replaced as yes it's true, teeth can shift but and the time it takes for them to shift I think really depends on the person. Some people aren't bothered that their teeth shift and are quite happy with leaving it like that.

A bridge is a good option if you have the teeth on either side remaining however if you do get a bridge, you are sacrificing a further 2 teeth and I've been told a bridge doesn't last forever either so there is a chance you may lose the other 2 teeth in the near future as they have to shave them down.

My dentist recommended that as Dental Implants are so expensive, I leave the teeth out for now and see how I get on and if I'm really having troubles eating, I can look to replace one or 2 of my molars providing there is not a significant amount of bone loss. I have decided that I will replace the lower 1st but I may leave the upper 1st and 2nd and see how I get on. My biggest issue is my smile, I don't want people to look at me differently because they can see a tooth missing