Having an ankylosed tooth is not the end of the world, but it can cause issues for you and your child or teenager. While ankylosed teeth are rare, they are not unheard of. Here is some information about what ankylosed teeth are and how they are treated.

What Are They?

When you are a child, your baby teeth (also called deciduous teeth or milk teeth) fall out and are replaced by permanent teeth that you will have for the rest of your life. Usually, baby teeth fall out because the tooth roots are absorbed by the gums, which loosens the baby teeth. However, ankylosed teeth are baby teeth that don't fall out because the tooth roots become fused to the jawbone. Sometimes, permanent teeth become ankylosed as well.

There is no direct cause for ankylosed teeth. You may have people in the family who have ankylosed teeth, which gives you a genetic predisposition. Sometimes, people develop ankylosed teeth because they have experienced trauma to the jaw, such as in a car accident or sports injury.

How Are They Treated?

When you or someone you love has an ankylosed tooth, there are several ways to treat it. If the tooth is permanent, you may have to have the tooth removed and replaced with a dental implant. In some cases, an ankylosed permanent tooth can be repositioned into place. An ankylosed baby tooth is simply removed so that the permanent tooth is able to come in.

While there is no way to determine if your tooth is ankylosed just by looking at it, dentists are able to tell through a simple X-ray. If you are worried that you have an ankylosed tooth or that a family member may have one, you need to visit a dentist as soon as possible.