Maintaining good oral health is our responsibility. Regretting would not help once a dental problem arises, as we should have avoided such situation in advance. Tooth loosening is never a trivial matter, and it is closely linked to our daily care practices. If not handled properly, it will lead to tooth loss.

1. What is tooth loosening?

It refers to the looseness of the tooth beyond the normal physiological range. Healthy teeth may move in a certain range, mainly in the horizontal direction and slightly in the vertical direction. If that range is no more than 0.02 mm, it is hard to be detected.

Tooth loosening occurs when the teeth move beyond that range due to certain diseases or other factors. It can cause toothache, periodontal inflammation, tooth loss, etc., which in turn impacts the chewing function of the teeth, resulting in indigestion.

2. Causes of tooth loosening

(1) Chronic tooth loosening is mainly caused by periodontitis;

(2) The bad habits of grinding teeth or clenching teeth at sleep can cause occlusal trauma, which may lead to tooth loosening in the long run;

(3) Biting down on hard objects or trauma can cause sudden tooth loosening;

(4) The resorption of the roots of deciduous teeth that occurs prior to the tooth transition can cause tooth loosening.

3. How to treat a loose tooth

(1) In most cases, tooth loosening is caused by inflammation around the teeth. In such case, the dentist will remove the calculus, plaque and other objects that cause inflammation to reduce the inflammation and slow down the resorption of alveolar bone;

(2) Tooth loosening caused by apical periodontitis requires root canal treatment;

(3) If the loose tooth has caused inflammation on the surrounding teeth and made them get loose or other lesions, then the excessively loosen tooth should be removed;

(4) It is normal for children to have loose teeth in transitional period, which requires no special treatment. However, if permanent teeth erupt before the deciduous teeth fall out, the loose deciduous teeth should be pulled out as soon as possible to avoid abnormal position of the permanent teeth.

4. Notes

Special attention is required for the loose teeth of the elderly, in order to avoid suffocation caused by tooth loss; tooth loosening may also be seen on menopausal women who suffer from osteoporosis of alveolar bone, and that can be fixed by anti-osteoporosis treatment.

Tooth loosening is not a trivial matter. It’s advisable to seek medical treatment as soon as possible.

Please feel free to contact me if there’s any dental problem (WeChat ID: aiyuan325180).