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No matter what your age, if you are missing teeth due to a dental extraction, an accident, decay, or you are simply tired of your ill-fitting dentures, you may be a candidate for dental implants. Dental implants can be for one tooth, several teeth, or, in some cases, your entire mouth.
What is a dental implant?
A dental implant is a replacement dental tooth root made of titanium, which anchors into the jawbone and supports an implant crown. The bone grows around the implant as if it were a natural tooth but even stronger.
How are implant crowns and fixed  implant bridgework different from conventional bridges?
An implant supported crown or a multiple tooth implant restoration is different from removable bridgework in that no natural adjacent teeth need be altered. A conventional bridge needs two natural teeth to be attached to on either end. A fixed implant bridge is self-supporting and does not involve altering the structure of other adjacent teeth. It is permanently attached to the jawbone.
How is fixed implant bridgework different from dentures?
Dentures are typically supported by gums and remaining teeth. In time they loosen, become uncomfortable and can lead to the eventual loss of the natural teeth that the denture is attached to.
Dental Implants feel like natural teeth, they are stable, secured to the jawbone and not removable. They allow you to eat foods such as apples and corn on the cob, just as with natural teeth.
Do dental implants work immediately? How many visits are required?
Dental implants generally require an initial surgical visit for implant placement and can be done relatively quickly. Implants are placed into the jawbone creating an artificial tooth root. The healing process usually takes three to six months.
During the healing process you will be fitted with temporary natural looking teeth. Mini-transitional implants can be used for a temporary acrylic bridge or crown during the healing phase of the definitive implants.
After the healing process, a minor surgery is performed to uncover the implants ,which have stabilized in the jawbone and are underneath the gum. |
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