Anatomy
Tooth socket
A tooth socket is the hole in the jawbone that holds the root of a tooth. It is lined by the periodontal ligament.
Each tooth root fits into a socket in the jawbone. The wall of the socket is made of alveolar bone. The periodontal ligament fills the narrow space between the root and the bone.
When a tooth is removed, an empty socket remains. A blood clot forms in it. If the clot is lost too early, the socket can become painful. That problem is called dry socket.
Your dentist will give you written aftercare steps for the socket. Our office describes removals on its tooth extraction page.
Related terms
- Alveolar bone
- Periodontal ligament
- Dry socket (alveolar osteitis)
- Tooth extraction
- Blood clot (socket clot)