Posted on 5/1/2024 by Surprise Oral & Implant Surgery
Your jawbone can actually come through your gums, and it is a known medical condition. When your jawbone comes through your gums, you are suffering from a condition called the osteonecrosis of the jaw.
What Is Osteonecrosis of the Jaw
Osteonecrosis of the jaw is a rare condition that occurs when the bone cells in your jawbone die, and the dead jawbone pokes through an opening in your gums. Some people have mistaken a protruding jawbone for one of their teeth. The protruding jawbone cannot receive any blood when it is exposed, meaning that more of your jawbone continues to die. The entire process often starts when something prevents the flow of blood to a section of your jawbone. The section of the jawbone dies and finds its way through the gums.
What Causes Osteonecrosis of the Jaw?
Osteonecrosis of the jaw is associated with certain factors. One of these factors is tooth extraction, which involves extensive oral surgery. You can also suffer osteonecrosis of the jaw after getting a dental implant or dental bone graft. These oral surgery procedures tend to leave some of the jawbone exposed, preventing that section from receiving enough blood, and it eventually dies. When that happens, the jawbone finds its way out of the gum, leaving you with a severe condition.
When your gums also fail to heal after tooth extraction, you are likely going to suffer from osteonecrosis of the jaw. After a tooth extraction, a blood clot usually forms over the open socket. After two days, the blood clot leaves room for your gum tissues to cover the now-empty socket, a process that covers up your jawbone. When that natural healing process fails, your jawbone will remain exposed, and it cannot receive any blood flow, so the bone cells will eventually die.
Oral surgeons and prosthodontists are specialists qualified to treat osteonecrosis of the jaw. However, the treatment of this complex condition depends on the stage of the disease, with antibiotics, antiseptic mouth rinses, and pain relievers considered most suitable when the condition is at stage zero.
Your jawbone can actually come through your gums, and it is a known medical condition. When your jawbone comes through your gums, you are suffering from a condition called the osteonecrosis of the jaw.