Hi Rachie. I can only tell you what I chose to do - extract the tooth. It was one of the big ones in the bottom jaw. No one can see the hole, unless they look in my mouth, and I think having it out helped my health. A few years ago I lost another tooth at the top, which was kind of near the front, and there is a little gap when I smile. This bothers me sometimes, but I don't even know if anyone notices.

I really don't think losing one tooth will "cave in" the face. I think you would have to lose several teeth for that to happen. Depending where the tooth is located, you could have difficulty biting for a while, but gums do harden in weeks.

I think dentists like to save as many teeth as possible -and I'm sure some dentists hate a tooth to be extracted because it's cheaper to take it out rather than do work on it (and more work in the future). The first dentist I saw was reluctant to take my root-canal filled tooth out, but the second agreed it was in my best interest.

I really don't know much about root-canals, but my dentist doesn't favour them and says the tooth only stays sterile for a little while.

As hard as it is, only you can make the decision - just thought I'd let you know what I did <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />