Causes of Loose Teeth
A person’s first set of teeth, their primary teeth, are meant to fall out when the secondary teeth, or permanent teeth, are ready to erupt into the mouth, but these permanent teeth aren’t meant to fall out at all. If you have a loose permanent tooth, the tooth faces an increased risk of falling out or needing to be extracted. When people are missing any of their permanent teeth, their self-esteem can suffer and they may lose the confidence to smile or even speak directly. Missing teeth also cause health problems to develop, including the inability to eat a balanced, nutritional diet and the gradual reabsorption of the bone that was once stimulated and kept alive by the tooth that is now missing. If you have a loose tooth, see your dentist promptly to try to save the tooth and keep it from falling out. There are a few different possible causes of loose teeth, but none of them will get better on their own; only a medical professional can treat, and possibly save, a loose tooth, and medical and dental professionals can also design and implement dental restoration treatments if you do lose one or more of your permanent teeth.
One of the more common causes of loose teeth is gum disease that has been allowed to progress untreated. When gum disease is in its earlier stages, it is characterized by inflammation in the gum tissue. This is reversible, and the gums can be fully restored to health, but when gum disease is allowed to progress, it can develop and turn into periodontitis. Periodontitis is an irreversible gum disease that is characterized by the gradual destruction of the gum tissue and the ligaments that connect the teeth to the bone, which causes the teeth to loosen and eventually fall out. Once the teeth have fallen out, the bone and remaining oral tissues continue to degrade in the absence of healthy teeth to support and sustain them.
Osteoporosis can also cause the teeth to loosen and possibly fall out. Osteoporosis is a disease that causes the bones in a person’s body to lose density and weaken over time. When the bone loses its integrity, this includes the bone in the jaw; as bone density in the jaw decreases, the risk of teeth loosening and falling out increases. Other health conditions, as well as certain medications, can also increase people’s risk of gum disease, which will, in turn, increase their risk of loose teeth. Extreme hormone fluctuations, such as those experienced during puberty and pregnancy, can also cause the teeth to loosen, though this is usually temporary and resolves when the hormone levels even out.
In addition to these internal conditions, certain external conditions can cause teeth to loosen. If your mouth and teeth undergo trauma, they can loosen. In cases of less severe trauma to the mouth, it may take a day or two for the teeth to loosen, if they are going to loosen at all. If you experience more significant trauma to the mouth, however, the damage is likely to be immediate and may include the ligaments that hold the teeth in place, the teeth themselves, and even the bone that supports them. For extensive facial trauma, a medical team can work to restore the condition of the face and the oral cavity, though a tooth that has been knocked out cannot be restored.