Medically Reviewed By Dr. Redlinger

Have you ever wondered what might happen to your tooth if your dentist missed a cavity? Chances are, your dentist hasn’t missed anything, but at times, it can be interesting to wonder. Honestly, if you are going to the dentist every six months, your cavity is not likely to grow enough to go from miss-able to a problem in that short of time. Some can, but those are relatively rare. What is more likely to happen is that your cavity will simply grow larger.

Untreated Cavities

If you only go in and see your dentist once per decade, a single missed cavity could pose a real problem. It could grow to consume your entire tooth, leave you in pain, and eventually need to be extracted if it doesn’t fall out on its own. However, most people understand just how important it is to see their dentist more often than that.

For most people, missing a single cavity isn’t going to do a lot of damage if the timespan is a mere six months. It is going to grow, but it shouldn’t be a fast process. What will happen is the tooth will continue to decay in small increments, and you will go in to your dentist where the cavity will be seen and treated.

Long-term cavities that go without treatment can crack and become incredibly painful. This is part of why it is so detrimental for you to make sure you see your dentist every six months. The sooner a cavity is caught, the easier it is to treat, and the less involved the filling actually is. Go in and see your dentist right away if you suspect that you have a cavity in one of your teeth, and let them check so you know for sure.