Dental Implants: Restoring Health after Tooth Loss

A person can suffer the loss of teeth through an accident or injury, because of genetics, age, a disease, a poor diet, from smoking or drug use. Whatever the reason, there are serious health concerns that will affect the teeth if they are not replaced in the next few months. Teeth offer support to the jaw bone and without them a shift in the facial bones can lead to damage to the remaining teeth and deterioration to the jaw itself. Issues such as pain, difficulty with speaking, drinking, eating, and premature aging in appearance can occur.

Dental implants are an alternative treatment for replacing missing teeth. Throughout the past few decades most patients have been under the impression their only recourse was to have dentures or a bridge made In order to fill the void, but times have changed and advances have been made in dental care. Dentures and bridges can create new issues for a patient down the road because the loss of the root of each tooth creates a breakdown scenario for the support system for the jaw bone. A bridge is dependent upon the surrounding teeth to hold it in place and may require a tooth to be removed in order to achieve a better fit, and with no support given to the jaw, bone loss may begin to occur. Dentures also lack in support and may require several fittings before a proper one is established, and they are known to create an annoying "clicking" sound. Both the dentures and a bridge will need to be replaced in a few years as the mouth and jaw change in shape due to the missing tooth roots.

When a patient initially learns the cost of dental implants, the price may seem a bit excessive when compared to the price of dentures or a bridge, and sway their decision about implants. But when the benefits of having permanent dental implants surgically inserted are realized and added into the equation, the benefits experienced down the road may outweigh the cost incurred now. With implants an oral surgeon will insert titanium roots into the jaw bone, which will restore the support system to the bone, allowing it to remain healthy and prevent the acceleration in deterioration. After the "teeth" are installed, a patient can resume a normal lifestyle: brushing and flossing and enjoying a lack of food restrictions, unlike the denture wearers, who remove their teeth, soak them over night and must be diligent about the numerous food restrictions in order to properly care for their teeth.

A patient will schedule an appointment with an experienced and Board Certified oral surgeon who will perform an evaluation, take x-rays and make a mold of their mouth, then determine the best course of treatment. In some cases dental implants can be complete in one full day's visit, while most patients will require a few appointments. But once the process is complete, the return to "normal" life will be very much appreciated.