Why does a dentist sometimes choose to leave broken but unrestorable roots in a patients mouth?

Usually dentists recommend removing unrestorable teeth from a patients mouth. This can keep them from becoming infected or if they are infected keeping the infection from spreading. Sometimes dentists choose to leave unrestorable roots in a  patients mouth. They do this sometimes to help maintain the alveolar bone around the roots. If a patient is not ready to have an implant placed then retaining roots can help maintain the bone until a patient is ready to go ahead with an implant. When the patient is ready he or she can  have the root removed in an atraumatic manner and ether an implant or bone grafting material  placed.

While waiting the patient can have a simple all acrylic flipper made that is quite cosmetic to fill the space where the clinical crowns used to be. For some elderly patients a flipper may even be used indefinitely as a replacement, since if the patient is happy there is no need for further dental treatment. The photo at the start of my blog post shows an octogenarian's mouth. He broke two front lower incisors  and the radiograph taken showed that they were not infected. Since he was not in a hurry to have the roots removed, we decided to leave the roots in place and make a simple flipper to replace his missing teeth. He has happily worn this flipper for the last year and does not desire going forward with the extractions of the two roots at this time.

 

  About the author: Lawrence Spindel DDS is a dentist in New York City, who has has maintained  a general and cosmetic dental practice for over thirty years.