“What makes a smile perfect?” This is a common question we are asked as dentists. Well the answer to this is very complex, as there are multiple factors that contribute to that million dollar smile. Your teeth should be healthy and clean, that’s the most important. Other factors such as the shape, size, colour and position of your teeth also contribute greatly. One common complaint most patients have is that they are unhappy with the gaps between their teeth showing when they smile. Gaps in the front teeth become very noticeable as compared to other regions in the mouth. This condition is known as Diastema and is a common reason for patients to opt for smile design dental treatment in Mumbai.
Not all gaps between teeth are considered abnormal. In fact all children have gaps between their milk teeth; this is to accommodate the larger adult teeth when they erupt. Permanent teeth ideally should not have gaps between them. Sometimes the gap between the teeth is very small to negligible, whereas larger gaps between the teeth are not aesthetically pleasing. Most common causes of these gaps are discrepancy in tooth and jaw size, thick frenal attachments, habits like thumb sucking and/or tongue thrusting and dental and gum diseases.
Discrepancy in the size of the teeth and size of the jaw can lead to gaps between the teeth as the size of the teeth/tooth is smaller as compared to the jaw bone, which makes teeth taking positions far apart from one another. Spaced teeth can also be seen running in families as size of the jaw bone and teeth is determined by genetics. This condition is usually corrected with orthodontic treatment, commonly known as braces. Recently aligners are the chosen mode for such dental treatment in Mumbai and other cities.
There can be gap between the teeth if the frenal tissue overgrows. Thick fibrous bands of tissue at the tooth gum junction between teeth can lead to separation between the teeth during the development of the jaw and teeth. Removal of the fibrous tissue between the teeth causing separation during the developing stages can minimize the gapping between the teeth. In case of adults where development of the jaw bone and teeth is complete removal of such a fibrous tissue would not suffice, you will require to undergo some treatment for removal of the diastema.
Gaps between the teeth may also develop in childhood due to bad habits such as thumb sucking and/or tongue thrusting. Thumb sucking leads to pressure of the front teeth which causes forward tilting of the teeth. Forwardly placed teeth become widely spaced from each other leading to gaps between the teeth. Sometimes tongue thrusting also leads to pressure against the front teeth which leads to spacing. Discrepancy in the size of the tongue and jaw bone can also cause forward movement of teeth due to larger size of tongue.
Infections of the gums can also be a potential cause of gaps between the teeth. Gums infection, bleeding gums or swollen gums cause destruction of the bone and soft tissue around the tooth. This infection may lead to loss of tooth or reduction in the height of gums and bone around the teeth. Loss of tooth or loss of gum height between the teeth causes gaps between the teeth. This is known as pathologic migration.
At the Maxfac Clinic, we provide advanced dental care in Mumbai for correction of gaps in teeth and our aim is to eliminate the cause and may include one or more of the following options:
1. Orthodontic correction of malposed teeth
2. Tooth coloured restorations like laminates/veneers and crowns
3. Frenectomy
4. Treatment of periodontal diseases
5. Habit breaking appliances
To understand more about gaps between the teeth its diagnosis and treatment options, feel free to contact The Maxfac Clinic on +91 8879745345. We are a super-speciality clinic providing advanced dental care in Mumbai.