If a baby tooth is extracted or falls out prematurely, then adjacent teeth may drift into the gap created by the missing baby tooth. If this happens there will be no room for the permanent tooth to grow into. To prevent this, we recommended the use of space maintainers to preserve the space until the child’s permanent teeth are ready to replace the lost baby tooth.

When a child loses a baby tooth prematurely and the permanent tooth has not erupted yet, then a space maintainer can be used to maintain the space needed for the permanent tooth. A baby tooth can be lost early either from decay that requires it to be pulled out or because it is infected. Some teeth also get loose due to internal resorption and fall out early on their own. Either way, the loss of the tooth creates a space and the only way to prevent other teeth from drifting into that space is through the use of space maintainers.