The Sacramento Dentistry Group Responds: Can I Visit the Dentist With a Piercing?
Oral piercings represent a health risk for the teeth and gums. Nevertheless, the dentists at the Sacramento Dentistry Group still want to see patients who wear piercings. Continued dental care is critical for monitoring the complications that often result from piercings.
Sacramento, CA, November 18, 2016 (Newswire.com) - The title question was recently asked on the Sacramento Dentistry Group website. The simple answer is that dentists certainly want you to visit, whether you have piercings or not. Nevertheless, it’s typically in the patient’s best interest to remove any piercings before dental work begins, as high-speed instruments are often used in dentistry and a collision between oral jewelry and a dental tool could be extremely painful and damaging.
The primary complication with piercings is not making a visit to the dentist. The major and most pressing issue is the damage piercings do to the teeth and gums. Whether the piercing is in the tongue or in the lip, reports and experience show that they significantly increase the risk of cracked teeth. A cracked tooth usually requires replacement with a crown, a sad result simply for the sake of cosmetics.
The other major complication from lip piercings is a rapid increase in gum recession. With almost no exceptions, the location of the piercing is also the site of significant gum loss. Very young patients with lip piercings often demonstrate receding gums comparable to people decades older. With these types of piercings, it is inevitable that the jewelry rubs against the gums, constantly irritating and wearing them away. Once the root is exposed, decay, bone damage and eventual tooth loss follow.
So while the staff at the Sacramento Dentistry Group realizes that adults have the right to choose their forms of adornment, it is also the dentist’s responsibility to inform patients of the consequences of their actions. When teeth eventually suffer these consequences, their dentists are also available to help patients “pick up the pieces.” While it’s possible that this may be in a literal sense, with the selection of alternate forms of self-expression, oral health care patients may avoid potential dental disasters from decorative piercings. For more information, contact the Sacramento Dentistry Group at 916-538-6900.
Source: Sacramento Dentistry Group
