Solutions for Missing Back Teeth

Missing back teeth can make daily life difficult. Things that were once easy, like chewing or speaking, may now be unreasonably challenging. If you’re looking for the best solution for your missing back teeth, you are in good company. 

The best method of tooth replacement will depend on the current condition of your mouth, including your existing healthy teeth, your gums, and your jawbone. 

Let’s review some basics about your back teeth and delve into the options available for replacing them. 

Why Are Your Back Teeth so Important? Do They Really Need to Be Replaced?

If your missing back teeth are not making you physically uncomfortable, you may wonder whether you need to replace them. 

Your back teeth consist of your molars and premolars:

• Molars: Molars are large teeth with flat surfaces that we use to chew food into smaller, more manageable pieces. Our incisors are used for biting into the food, the canines and premolars are used for tearing food off. The molars are used for mashing food, mixing in the salivary enzymes, and beginning the digestive process in your mouth.

• Premolars: Premolars are also known as first molars, and they are the first molar teeth that come in when we are around 12 or 13 years old. Your premolars are the foremost molars in your mouth, and they help you tear off and chew up your food. 

Your back teeth play an important role in helping you chew. Without them, you could potentially damage your other teeth each time you eat. Your teeth work to support each other and your jaw. When you have missing back teeth, you shift the load to the front teeth, which are not designed to mash food. This puts a more significant burden on your GI tract because your food hasn’t been ideally mashed. Replacing missing teeth is a critical aspect of maintaining your dental health. 

Missing back teeth can interfere with proper chewing of food, jaw support, and the stability of your remaining healthy teeth. If you do not replace your missing teeth, the adjacent healthy teeth will eventually start to move around and may even tip over into the empty space. Replacing a missing tooth is much easier soon after tooth loss. Waiting to replace a tooth can make the process more difficult because of your other teeth shifting. 

What Options Are Available to You? Overview

When it comes time to select a method of tooth replacement, there are a few different options available. All of these options offer different advantages and disadvantages. 

There’s one option that makes the most sense. If you’re ready to dive into a same-day, lower-cost solution for missing teeth, Stabili-Teeth™ has got you covered. Click here to get started!

Dental Implants

Dental implants are one way that you can replace missing teeth, but they are often only recommended for single-tooth replacement because of their high cost. Dental implants are posts or screw-like pieces of titanium that are surgically placed in your upper or lower jaw, or below the gums but above or on your jaw. After placement, the implants function as a stable anchor for prosthetic teeth that are attached once your gums have healed. 

Dental implants are most commonly made of titanium, which is a strong and lightweight material. This titanium is used alongside other materials known to be accepted by the human body, but there can still be a high chance of implant rejection depending on the dental implant method used. 

In order to get dental implants, you need to have adequate bone to support the implant. If you do not have adequate bone accessible, you will need to undergo another expensive procedure to add to your existing bone. The healing process tends to be slow because the procedure is so invasive.

Dental implants generally cost several thousand dollars per tooth despite the probability of rejection, so this method may not be the best option if you are looking to get several missing teeth replaced. 

Fixed Bridges

Fixed bridges will fail. According to the ADA, the life expectancy of a three-unit bridge—one tooth on each side of the space of the missing tooth—is only seven to nine years, with terminal failure of one or both of the teeth that support the bridge. This means you will be sacrificing your remaining healthy teeth for a tooth replacement option that lasts less than a decade.

Placing a fixed bridge typically requires more than one appointment. The process will start with your adjacent teeth being prepared, usually by grinding them down. Once the teeth are prepared, the bridge will be attached to them. Although fixed bridges are more affordable than implants, they’re often not worth the loss of your existing teeth.

Dentures

Dentures are another possible option for replacing missing teeth, and they are available as removable partial dentures or full dentures. 

Removable dentures can be easily taken out of your mouth for cleaning, and they generally have prosthetic teeth attached to them that fill the gaps where you had missing teeth. Sometimes, crowns or caps will be recommended for your healthy teeth to make the dentures more secure in your mouth.

Fixed dentures are dentures that attach to implants in your mouth or are otherwise secured to your teeth for added stability.

Dentures are affordable but impractical because of their fair share of downfalls. Similar to bridges, dentures are increasingly a thing of the past. There are better modern options available.

Dentures are particularly susceptible to wear and tear over time, and they can easily be broken or lost. They need to be replaced every few years, and they look artificial. Dentures aren’t very stable in your mouth and tend to be uncomfortable due to their palatal coverage. They can also become looser and more ill-fitting with time, which means you have to go to the dentist in order to get them adjusted. If you don’t take care of your ill-fitting dentures in time, it could damage your existing teeth.

Dentures require careful maintenance to make sure any bacteria is cleaned away when you insert your dentures since they can’t be worn at night or while eating certain foods. Your dentures should be brushed and soaked every day, but you have to do this gently so that you do not do damage them. 

Disadvantages of Traditional Tooth Replacement Methods

Evidently, all traditional methods of replacing missing teeth have their downfalls. Although implants are effective, they are very costly (and somewhat risky). Where dentures are more affordable, they are not nearly as stable. 

Fixed bridges may seem like a middle ground, but they require your healthy, adjacent teeth to be altered in order for the bridge to be properly supported. So, what is the solution? Is there any option that does not come along with the problems raised by traditional methods?

We have you covered. 

The Solution: Stabili-Teeth™

Stabili-Teeth™ was created as an alternative to the traditional DENTURES AND FIXED DETACHABLES (as in Clear Choice or All-on-Four) because although dentures have their downfalls, they have been proven to work marginally, while Fixed Detachables work great, but the cost remains very high. Stabili-Teeth™ builds off of the concepts that have been successful and improve upon the aspects of a denture that have failed in the past.

Plus, our affordable treatment process comes with a 5-year warranty and includes bone grafting, tooth extraction, and sedation, so there will be no surprises when it comes to the price. Our all-inclusive price for one arch is $12,500 and $21,500 for a full-mouth restoration. We are committed to offering you a highly effective, long-lasting solution at affordable prices because we know how important it is for you to bring joy back into your life. 

Schedule your consultation today using our online form, which asks about the current condition of your teeth so that we can properly assess your individual situation. If you are ready to get your life back, we are here to help.

The Bottom Line

Your back teeth do the bulk of your chewing. Without them, this task falls onto your other teeth, which were not made to be in this role. Without your back teeth, your other teeth are at risk of shifting and tipping into the empty spaces where you have lost teeth.

Dental implants, fixed bridges, and dentures are all options available to you to replace your missing teeth… but all of these methods come with prohibitive downfalls like high prices, discomfort, poor stability, or short life spans.

Stabili-Teeth™ was created to solve the problems caused by traditional methods of replacing teeth. Our treatment process is modern and affordable so that you can bring joy back into your life. Eat steak, salad, and smile again with Stabili-Teeth™.

Sources:

Five Types of Human Teeth & Their Function | ACI NJ (aci.edu)

Missing Teeth | American College of Prosthodontists (gotoapro.org)

ADA Patient Smart | Tooth Replacement Options (ada.org)

Bridges and partial dentures (dentalhealth.org)