Your dental health relies on structures that are mostly tucked away and hidden from plain sight. The bones that support your teeth need to be healthy to maintain teeth structure and avoid shifting or getting loose. One of the important factors that keep your teeth anchored and in place is the alveolar process.
The dental term for the bones that surround your teeth is called alveolar process or alveolar bone. The alveolar bone is the portion of the jaw bone that has the alveoli where your teeth are actually suspended. This makes the alveolar process connected or linked to other structures like your jaw, teeth, and gums. It is composed of outer and inner cortical plate of strong bone that encloses the spongy bone. It rests on the basal bone. The proper development of your alveolar process depends mainly on tooth eruption and keeping it depends on your tooth’s retention. Tooth extraction or failure of teeth to develop because the alveolar process fails to form and the remaining jawbone to reduce in height.
Imagine the root of your tooth. The alveolar process can be found below the apex of your tooth’s root. This is called the basal bone in dental terms. The basal bone comes from the same cells that create bones in the body. It also has higher density than alveolar bone which serves as a protective structure for other parts of the mouth like the nerves, arteries, and the sinus.
Like mentioned at https://www.24hourdentistinlosangeles.com/, the alveolar process develops as the tooth develops. It surrounds the tooth once it erupts and is covered by your gums. The exterior area of the alveolar process found under the gums is the cortical plates. The interior side of the bone is termed as the alveolar bone proper next to the tooth which explains the difference between the alveolar process and the alveolar bone. The alveolar bone proper isn’t attached to the tooth. The only link of your tooth and the alveolar bone proper is the periodontal ligament which contains blood vessels, fibers, and nerves.
The alveolar process is just as important as the other surrounding structures in your mouth for teeth health. Without the alveolar process, your teeth won’t stay on your jaw and would not function properly. Gum disease is something that should be discovered early on and taken seriously as this condition can potentially affect your bone health. Hence, dental appointments. Advanced periodontitis destroys the bone that supports your teeth that can damage nerves and blood vessels that can eventually result to tooth loss.
The loss of alveolar process can definitely have immediate and observable changes on your appearance. It can change the shape of your mouth and affect your bite. The alveolar bone is somewhat like a house of the tooth and without it the area of the bone would shrink. It would be difficult to replace missing teeth with dentures or other dental appliance without the alveolar bone.
Take care of your dental health by taking care of your alveolar bones through daily dental care routine.