Impacted Canines

Treat With Exposure & Bonding

A canine tooth is considered impacted if it is stuck beneath the gums. An expose and bond procedure is used to help it successfully emerge.

What Is an Impacted Tooth?

When a tooth does not properly erupt into the mouth, it is impacted. The most commonly impacted teeth are wisdom teeth, followed by canine teeth. Canines are crucial for chewing and biting, so it’s important these teeth function and erupt properly.

A tooth can become impacted for several reasons. In some cases, there isn’t enough room in the jaw for them to fit in the dental arch. Sometimes they cannot follow the normal path alongside adjacent teeth to help them erupt properly. No matter the reason, it’s important to have impacted teeth properly evaluated by a skilled oral surgeon. This way, we can work together to ensure all your teeth emerge and function properly.

Causes of Impacted Canine Teeth

An impacted canine tooth occurs when the adult canine tooth does not erupt properly and becomes stuck in the jaw bone. Several factors can cause this condition:

• A baby tooth or abnormal growth is blocking its path: Sometimes, a baby tooth may not fall out on its own, or there may be an abnormal growth that is obstructing the eruption of the permanent canine tooth.
• Dental overcrowding: When there isn't enough space in the dental arch for all the teeth to align properly, it can cause the canine teeth to become impacted.
• Not enough room in the dental arch: In some cases, the size and shape of the dental arch may not provide adequate space for the canine teeth to erupt naturally.

Treating an impacted canine tooth early improves the chances of successful eruption and function. When an impacted tooth is not addressed, it becomes more fused with the jaw bone. Once fused, exposure and bonding is no longer an option to treat the impacted canine tooth. The only solution left is to remove the tooth and replace it with a dental implant.

Treating Impacted Canines

Treatment for an impacted canine usually consists of an expose and bond procedure. Typically, your oral surgeon and orthodontist will work closely together to help an impacted canine successfully emerge. Your oral surgeon will help expose the impacted tooth, and your orthodontist will help bond an attachment to it that gradually helps it emerge. The specific procedure will depend on your condition, so the team at 7x7 Dental Implant & Oral Surgery Specialists designs a personalized treatment plan that works for you. Our staff’s goal is to make sure you are well-informed and comfortable throughout all steps of your oral surgery treatment. We are here to address all of your questions and concerns!

It’s crucial to treat an impacted tooth as early as possible because if impacted teeth go untreated for too long, they become permanently trapped beneath the gums. If this happens, your dental professional will not be able to save your tooth. For these instances, our oral surgeons offer safe and gentle tooth extractions in our San Francisco, CA, offices as well as a variety of tooth replacement options so that your smile will not be incomplete and you will have fully functioning arches of teeth.