If this plaque is not adequately brushed or washed away, it interacts with the minerals in your saliva and eventually produces tartar. Plaque is a sticky coating that builds around your teeth as a result of actions such as eating and drinking. Plaque bacteria then grow rapidly and develop into tartar, which is a threat to your oral health. What is Calculus?Ĭonsumption of sugary foods and dairy products contributes greatly to the growth of plaque formation. In this blog, you’ll learn what exactly a tartar bridge is, what causes it, what its side effects are, and how to prevent it. According to the Centers for Condition Control and Prevention (CDC), tartar is a major cause of this disease.īut yes, fortunately, both tartar and calculus are preventable. If not properly removed or operated on, it develops into tartar buildup, which increases the risk of serious infections, permanent bone loss around the teeth, or diseases that can affect your mouth.Īccording to a conservative estimate, periodontal disease affects 70% of persons aged 65 and up. Tartar, also known as calculus, primarily affects adults and worsens as the person ages.

2.1.1 Side effects of the Calculus Bridge.

2.1 What causes the development of a calculus bridge?.

This article was originally published by our partners at. It took everything we had to play it cool and act like everything was normal.' -Anonymous The dentist and I soon realized that the patient's beard was full of bugs. 'During my first gig as a dental assistant, I was helping with a filling when I spotted an ant in our patient's mouth. One good sneeze and her front teeth would've been history.' -Anonymous Once I removed the tartar and plaque, her teeth were practically dangling and literally moved when she breathed.

'I've seen a lot in my 20-plus years as a dentist, but the worst case of periodontal disease I've ever seen involved a woman who's teeth were being held in place by her calculus bridge.

When You Hope This Person Never Gets A Cold MORE: 8 Super-Annoying Mouth Problems-Solved! 'A patient opened her mouth and all that was left of her teeth were black nubs.' -Dr. It was one of the grossest experiences ever.' -Dr. Another patient had one that needed to be drained, and his mouth was flooded with pus when I poked it. 'One patient of mine had an abscess so big that it spanned the entire half of his jaw. When You Don't Want To Explain What's Spilling into Your Patient's Mouth She had to have her mouth wired shut for 2 months.' -Anonymous 'When I was doing a routine extraction, my patient's jaw freakishly broke in half. When You Thought You'd Be In and Out of the Office I've seen teeth just fall out because once the build-up was removed, there was nothing to keep them in place.' - Joel Smith, DDS For example, tartar and plaque build-up so severe that it forms a bridge between the teeth (known as a calculus bridge). 'Most of my dental horror stories come from one simple category: neglect. When You Think Nothing Bad Happens from Skipping the Floss MORE: Sorry, You Definitely Still Need To Floss Every Single Day The smell of infected gums and rotten food was so rank that my dental assistant had to excuse herself to throw up.' -Anonymous Dentures are supposed to be taken out and cleaned daily, and it was clear that she hadn't taken hers out in months. 'An elderly woman came in to have her denture repaired.

When You Try Not to Vom in Your Patient's Mouth After asking the patient a few questions, I realized it was a tomato seed sprouting a plant.' -Glassman Amongst the plaque and tarter, I found some sort of seed lodged in the gums and there looked to be a tiny plant growing out of it. 'At the beginning of a root canal treatment, I started to clean out the root. MORE: 12 Things Your Dentist Knows About You Just By Looking In Your Mouth

Maggot calculus bridge