Why You May Need Dental Implants
Tooth loss is caused by many factors, including tooth decay, periodontal diseases or injury. Anyone can indeed suffer from the latter. A famous quote says that “smile while you still have teeth”, hence those who suffer tooth loss need remedy to have their right dental setting and bright smile back.
The gums are part of the soft tissue lining the mouth and provide firm support to the teeth as they are bound to the underlying bone. In many cases, loss of teeth affects the gums, making it challenging to place artificial teeth. In such cases, those affected use dental implants.
These are metal posts or frames, surgically positioned into the jawbone under the gums to support the replacement of artificial teeth. Titanium or titanium alloys make the implants with its visible portion, prosthetic tooth, made of porcelain.
Tooth Loss and Types of Implants
Tooth loss is caused by many factors, including tooth decay, periodontal diseases or injury. Anyone can indeed suffer from the latter. A famous quote says that “smile while you still have teeth”, hence those who suffer tooth loss need remedy to have their right dental setting and bright smile back.
The gums are part of the soft tissue lining the mouth and provide firm support to the teeth as they are bound to the underlying bone. In many cases, loss of teeth affects the gums, making it challenging to place artificial teeth. In such cases, those affected use dental implants. These are metal posts or frames, surgically positioned into the jawbone under the gums to support the replacement of artificial teeth. Titanium or titanium alloys make the implants with its visible portion, prosthetic tooth, made of porcelain.
- Subperiosteal dental implants are placed on top of the jawbone rather than into the jawbone. The dentist places a metal frame beneath the dental structure, followed by attachment of a post to the metal frame. On the healing of the damaged gum, it holds its place surrounding the frame. The artificial teeth are then placed on the poles that were attached to the metal frame and originated from the gums. Patients who do not possess the required jawbone density for an implant should undergo this procedure.
- Endosteal implants are the most common type of dental implant and compatible with many patients. Patients possessing a sound and healthy jawbone use endosteal implants which include placeholder posts shaped like crews. The procedure involves fitting of an artificial teeth jaw followed by attachment of the placeholder posts on this jaw. After fusion of the placeholder posts and the false teeth, there develops a stronghold for the replaced teeth and a subsequent healing process.
- Because of their complexity and procedure requiring utmost care, zygomatic implants are the rarest of the dental implants. These implants are placed on the cheekbone of the patients.
Apart from the above widely used implant procedures, there are other techniques of dental surgery like; the sinus lift, ridge expansion, and bone augmentation. These techniques are applied to restore natural jawline and provide a firm foundation for implanted teeth.
During bone augmentation, bone additives and growth factors are administered to make bone regeneration faster and more robust to support implants. In the process, synthetic or natural bone grafts are placed around the existing bone to allow its fusion and bonding. The healing process takes around six to nine months, after which special instructions have to be followed at home.
The sinus lift involves the addition of bone tissue below the sinus, where the natural bone is damaged. If the jaw is not wide enough to support dental implants, a small space is created along the jaw on which bone graft material is added. This procedure is referred to as the ridge expansion.
A Few of the Benefits
Dental implants have a couple of benefits, with the most outstanding being the replacement of the whole tooth. Implants provide a root that anchors the tooth directly into the jawbone. Because the implant mimics the anatomy of a natural tooth, it makes it easy to clean. Oral hygiene is necessary for maintaining both artificial and natural teeth. This contradicts the claim that most people have saying that false teeth cannot be affected or diseased. In most scenarios, the gums onto which the artificial teeth attach can weaken if not well taken care of. Weakened and bleeding gums eventually result in teeth loss, thus requiring a re-do of the implantation procedure.
Dental implants anchor the teeth firmly in the jawbone hence providing maximum chewing force. Only in rare cases will implanted teeth loosen while chewing. As a plus, the teeth do not click during talking or eating.
Implants may not be easily recognized because there is no connection to the neighboring tooth; neither is there a gap between the replaced tooth and the gums whenever there is a missing tooth, the gums and jawbone in that area shrink for a long time. On implantation, the implant stimulates the restoration of the jawbone and the gums.
During teeth replacements, the neighboring teeth provide tremendous support to the fitting of the artificial teeth. If poorly fitted, the false teeth may strain the adjacent teeth resulting in cracking or breaking. The stand-alone nature of dental implants eliminates the possibilities of all these adverse effects. Other benefits are; durability, which is closely tied to good oral hygiene, improved comfort, and self-esteem as they can hand you back your smile.
Making Dental Implants a Success
For the success of dental implants, the candidates ought to have good oral health in addition to adequate jawbone required to support the implant. The gums should be firm and free of periodontal disease. Dental implants do not have significant restrictions when it comes to age. Unfortunately, those with a younger generation need special considerations because the implant requires a fully developed jaw. Jaws fully develop around the age of seventeen to eighteen years. Older people rarely face complications, and if be, it is due to poor oral health or bone defections. Patients diagnosed with autoimmune medical conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis or diabetes are likely to encounter dental implant failure.
Aftercare is essential to the healing process after a routine dental surgery and long-term maintenance of the replaced teeth. At the forefront is optimum oral hygiene. Chlorhexidine mouthwash, among other cleaning agents, may fasten the healing process. Warm-salt water is recommended for rinsing the mouth after meals. Like natural teeth, artificial teeth need to be committed to cleaning them and a proper diet to avoid any health problems. A toothbrush could be used but with care on the site of the implant. On the day of surgery, the teeth should not be physically disturbed. Maintenance includes avoiding activities like rinsing the mouth and agitating the surgical site with the tongue or fingers. Smoking also impairs the healing process hence not advisable if one desires for the implant to be effective.
If you still have questions please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll help guide you to the right
dental implants in Fort Wayne, Indiana.