Do you have osteoporosis? If you’ve answered yes, then this article can benefit you greatly. In this blog post, Dr. Brad Greenfield, your Rochester Hills, MI dentist focuses on the effects of osteoporosis on your oral health and overall dental structure.
What’s Osteoporosis?
According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, osteoporosis is a bone disease in which patients have lost bone mass, can’t produce sufficient bone regrowth, or both. This results in frequent bone fractures and ails more women than men; however, the marginal difference is not by much.
Normally, bone marrow has a honeycomb structure, with numerous holes and spaces. With osteoporosis those spaces appear much larger, which weakens the overall bone structure. An estimated nine million Americans suffer with osteoporosis with the hips, spine, and wrists being the most fragile areas.
How Osteoporosis Relates to Oral Health
As with most bodily ailments, osteoporosis has an effect on your oral structure. The jaw bone alongside the gum line is what keeps tooth roots in place. Since osteoporosis is a bone-weakening disease, your jaw bone also becomes weakened. With loss of bone mass and the inability to replenish it, the jaw starts to atrophy, which makes patients more susceptible tooth loss.
Furthermore, once the structure of the jaw bone has been compromised and patients endure tooth loss, finding tooth replacement options becomes increasingly difficult. Any type of implant-supported option is no longer available, and dentures slowly turns into the only option.
To prevent these issues, your Rochester Hills, MI dentist recommends asking your regular physician for routine bone density checks once you’re reached the age of 50. Should you become diagnosed with osteoporosis, take care begin treatment immediately. Also, visit our practice with frequency to ensure your oral health doesn’t become affected.
Visit Lake Orion Family Dentistry for Preventative Dental Care
For more information on the effects of osteoporosis on your oral health, contact Dr. Greenfield. He can explain how bodily ailments can affect your smile and vice versa. To schedule an appointment with your for services, patient forms, and smile gallery. We happily serve patients in Clarkston, Auburn Hills, Oxford, Lake Orion, and neighboring communities.
