Bite Collapse

Patients that are diagnosed with bruxism are more likely to develop bite collapse because of the constant rubbing, grinding, and friction of the teeth that adds to the wearing down of their surfaces.

Gum disease also plays a significant role in bite collapse because as the gum tissues deteriorate, they will be unable to support the tea and hold them in place. Both of these cases ultimately lead to tooth loss, which further aggravates the patient’s tendency to incur the condition.

Bite collapse often leads to a recessed chin that makes patients lose their facial profile, resulting in an older and more tired-looking appearance. This inadvertently affects the appearance of the lips, making them look squished and compressed so that patients look like they are angry or pouting.
Bite collapse changes the shape of the patient’s face, making the chin closer to the nose and shortening the distance between the forehead and the chin. This facial shortening also increases the tendency for chronic headaches, premature wrinkles around the mouth area, facial pain, leaning into years, tightness of the jaw joint, and a double chin to develop.

Bite collapse can be treated with dental surgical facelifts that make the face look more proportionately balanced, reduce wrinkles, and alleviate the defective bite. This treatment not only reverses the signs of aging but also structurally augments facial support and corrects the position of the jaw.
This procedure can be done in conjunction with the application of dental veneers to reconstruct the patient’s bite and preserve the remaining natural teeth in order to maintain an ideal bite position.

Typical bite reconstruction will not be able to give the patient the additional lift that the face needs to recover from the effects of bite collapse. This is why it is best done in conjunction with the dental surgical facelift.

Your treatment for bite collapse is tailored to your unique oral anatomy, tooth loss, and other dental conditions. The process of restoring the vertical structure to your smile may take a few visits or it may take about six months. This will depend on the problems that your dentist must address and how you choose to address them. For example, if your bite collapse stems from tooth loss or you need to have some teeth removed, you may choose to replace those teeth with a dental bridge. The dental bridge process may take two to three visits that take place over four to six weeks. If you choose to replace missing teeth with dental implants, you can obtain the longest-lasting results but will experience a longer treatment program.

Bite collapse is an unpredictable issue that requires attention to detail on the part of your dentist. When you visit Arden Arcade Dental , you can expect your dentist to discuss exactly how they can help you reclaim just that, your Great Smile!

At rest, the face affected by bite collapse may look sunken or flat. The face generally looks shorter and the chin may also look smaller or set back. Bite collapse results in what has commonly been called a “granny smile.” In this, the appearance of the smile morphs from an upturned mouth with visible upper teeth to a smile in which the upper lip remains relatively flat. The height and arch of the upper lip and corners of the mouth aren’t reached normally, so more of the lower teeth show. If you’re aware of your smile, you may attempt to force a normal-looking smile. Usually, this only worsens the odd appearance of the mouth.

People with bite collapse also often experience the symptoms of TMJ disorder. This stems from stress on the temporomandibular joints resulting from changes in the bite. Symptoms of this condition include pain in the jaw, facial and neck pain, and chronic headaches.

Bite collapse is sometimes called facial collapse. However, the two conditions are different. Facial collapse is what happens when you lose teeth. The more teeth that are missing without proper replacement, the more the jawbone recedes. Jawbone recession decreases the support that the cheeks and lips receive, resulting in a sunken appearance in which the chin looks more pronounced or pointy. Bite collapse often involves the loss of posterior teeth or the general wear of teeth across the entire upper or lower arch. Both conditions have a negative impact on the vertical height of the smile but may require different treatments to restore optimal shape.

It can take years for you to see the cosmetic effects of the structural changes to your teeth, gums, and jawbone. The good news in this is that, with proper care from a dentist who is aware of the reality of bite collapse and facial collapse, you can halt the progression of breakdown. You don’t have to wait for your facial shape and profile to change. Contact us today to schedule your consultation for bite collapse care!

The results of your dental treatment for bite collapse are expected to last for several years, if not indefinitely. Most treatments for this condition involve some type of restoration. That may be porcelain veneers, crowns, bridges, or dental implants. At some point, you may need to have one or more of your restorations replaced due to normal wear and tear. These touch-up treatments are not nearly as complex and involved as the initial process of restoring proper height to your oral anatomy.