Dental Implant – A Permanent Solution
Dental Implants are an artificial tooth root that inserts into your jawbone to hold a replacement tooth or teeth. Dental implants are the perfect option for people with good oral health maintenance who are missing one tooth or multiple teeth due to periodontal disease, via trauma, or some other reason.
Dental Implants use the most modern materials that dentistry has to offer. Years and years of research have gone into the dental implants in use today. Dental implants are much more tooth friendly than traditional bridgework. Dental implants do not rely on neighboring teeth for support nor do the neighboring teeth need to be prepared to be part of the bridgework.
With optimal conditions and in the hands of a skilled dentist, dental implants can look as natural as your own teeth. Only you and your dentist would ever know you even have one. This gives patients the utmost in self confidence giving them the ability to broadly smile as well as eat as they choose. People missing teeth are generally self conscious about their smile and appearance. Following successful placement and restoration, dental implant patients can expect them to last a lifetime if they maintain good oral hygiene.
Modern dental implants can play a few roles in tooth or teeth replacement. These include:
- Replacement of one or more teeth without affecting the neighboring teeth.
- Act as support for a bridge. This will eliminate the need for a removable partial denture.
- Provide support and stability for a denture. Attaching a denture over dental implants make the denture more secure and comfortable. This is also called an implant supported overdenture.
Treatment
Any treatment for dental implants begins with a thorough examination to develop a proper treatment plan. Without a good game plan the treatment will be doomed to fail.
As mentioned earlier, dental implants are ideal in the following situations:
- Single tooth replacement: Dental implants are an ideal option for patients with the quantity and quality of bone necessary to hold an implant. The dental implant will allow you to maintain the natural tooth structure of adjacent teeth while replacing a lost tooth.
- Multiple teeth replacement: Dental implants are also ideal in this situation. If you are missing several teeth, implant supported bridges can replace them. Dental implants will replace both your lost natural teeth and some of the roots.
- Replacing all your teeth: If you are missing all of your teeth, an implant supported full bridge or full denture (also called an overdenture) can replace them. This renders traditional dentures to the curb as dental implants used in this fashion will be more stable allowing patients to eat and talk as if they have their own natural teeth.