About Dental Implant

In order for a dental implant to be successful the bone has to be strong enough to hold it. This isn’t always possible so an alternative is for a bone graft to be done so it can grow and fill in the gaps that have emerged. The most common area where this occurs is in the upper molars because of the sinus cavities.

The bone used for a dental implant has to come from one of two sources – either from another area on the person getting the implant or from a donor. There are several different methods used for successfully completing the dental implant bone process. In many cases some of the original bone can be stimulated so it will start growing again.

There are several different types of bone that can be used for a dental implant bone procedure. Autogenous bone is self produced and taken from another place on the bone such as the chin or the hips. Block bone grafting involves taking a piece of bone from the body and implanting it. This generally happens when the current bone is very weak. This dental implant bone may need to be in place for up to six months before the tooth implant can be added.

In order to stimulate bone growth there has to be a barrier introduced so tissue won’t be able to irritate the bone and hinder the growth process. Tissue is the number one reason why dental implant bone procedures aren’t always successful.

An allograft dental implant bone comes from another person, generally a dead person who has donated their body for various procedures. A xenograft is a bone that comes from an animal. Cows can be used for such dental implant bone needs in some instances. Regardless of the source though there is generally several months of healing that have to occur before the bone is secure enough for the tooth to be added.

The process of bone expansion involves using tools to pull the jaw bone apart in the area where the dental implant bone is going to be inserted. Since this bone is thicker and stronger the implant should be able to be added to the bone immediately. If this isn’t possible then an alternatives to install plates to line the bone that is weakened.

A dental implant bone procedure is lengthy and expensive. This is a type of surgery that can take significant time and care to recover from properly. Make sure this is only done by a qualified dentist They should explain each of your options to you so you can decide what type of dental implant bone procedure you want to have done. However this is a viable option to help you be able to keep your original teeth and to keep your gums healthy.

When considering a dental implant vs bridges we must take the following considerations into account:

o Jaw Bone resorption – Treatment with a dental implant involves placing implants in areas where there are no teeth and by so doing, the bone area is stimulated again and this prevents long term bone loss in that area. If a bridge that connects 2 teeth is used instead of a dental implant, pressure is not applied on the jaw bone! Therefore the bone is not stimulated and begins to shrink away. Conclusion : dental implants preserve the underlying jawbone.

oOral health – Dental implants do not affect your other healthy teeth, more of your own teeth are left intact. A bridge, on the other hand, may require the cutting down of healthy, adjacent teeth in order to support the bridge structure.

o Durability – a permanent solution to tooth loss is offered with a dental implant vs bridges , which have a life expectancy of only 10 years. Implants bond to the jaw bone and become part of it – this connection is as strong as a natural tooth root. Using a bridge relies on the side forces applied on the adjacent teeth and on the bridge’s structure.

When using a bridge you support your structure on natural teeth that are still vulnerable to decay and other diseases, implants on the other hand cannot develop any diseases since they are made of titanium.

o Oral hygiene – Individual dental implants allow easier access between teeth, enabling everyday normal dental care. Flossing bridges is not an easy task and requires time and patience, making it a tiresome process. This fact eventually will give an advantage to the implants by enabling improved everyday oral hygiene.

o Esthetics – A dental implant vs. bridges looks good due to modern technology allowing dentists to achieve results that look exactly like natural teeth. When comparing between a dental implant vs bridges , the conclusion is clear! Dental implants always looks better than bridges.

o Treatment plan flexibility – Dental implants enable more flexibility in planning a treatment plan than bridges. As a matter of fact, in many cases only implants can be used and bridges are not an option! Example- when a few teeth are missing in the same site.

o Price – The price of a bridge is cheaper than a dental implant solution. But when thinking about the long run – you must realize that implants will be a cheaper option after all ! Because of the low durability of the bridges and complications that might occur, additional expenses await you down the road. Example – having to replace the bridge…

So.. after Checking out a dental implant vs bridges and taking all the considerations onto account – it is quite clear that the dental implant vs. bridges solution is preferable. Even though the initial price is higher, in the long run it is actually a cheaper alternative.

Like any minor or major surgery, dental implant surgery may pose some health risks. Problems maybe rare though; but, when they do occur they are usually minor and can easily treated. Some risks include:

1.) Dental Implant site infection.
2.) Injury or damage to the surrounding structures, such as other teeth, blood vessels and the nasal cavity
3.) Nerve damage, which can cause pain, numbness or tingling sensation in your natural teeth, gums, lips or chin
4.) Sinus problems, it occurs when dental implants placed in the upper jaw protrude into one of your sinus cavities
(Source:MayoClinic)

Chances are that if you’re considering dental implants, you’ve already explored your other options. All other choices are less expensive, but they aren’t always possible. Not everyone can have their problem solved with a bridge or denture. However, there is a significant cost associated with this choice, so let’s look at the average dental implant costs.

As you may already know, insurance companies, for the most part, refuse to cover any portion of having implants put in. Along with some prohibitive costs, there is no guarantee they will “hold” – meaning the insurance company would need to pay, again, to have them fixed or replaced.

Implants are painful, and they are time consuming. There are two separate procedures for the process. Each one is billed separately. Your regular dentist will take care of the prep work / first half, and then you will be referred probably to an endodontist or an implant specialist who does nothing but provide dental implants.

Your regular dentist will schedule your first appointment to begin the process. He will prep your mouth and design your new tooth placement. Implants don’t necessarily need to go where the other teeth were – and there’s a good reason for this. You and your dentist need to decide on this, and other things, before proceeding.

On average, an implant patient gets about 3 implants. Even though there are many people who only need one tooth replaced, these are not the majority of implant patients. These individuals usually opt for less expensive treatment plans that involve a partial denture or anything their insurance company will pay for. If you have an area large enough for three implants, or more, you probably don’t even have the option of using a less expensive choice.

Three implants will run you about 10, 000 dollars. Dental implant costs will vary according to where you live. The price also will differ depending on what, if any, additional costs will change with other procedures your dentist may need to perform prior to the implant surgery (tooth extraction, etc.). Some type of financing is usually available.

To keep expenses at a minimum, work with your dentist to discuss the minimum number of implants you can get away with. Missing five teeth doesn’t necessarily mean you need five implants. If you had a wisdom tooth removed, you certainly don’t need it replaced. Normally, 3 implants will do the job without affecting your ability to eat, or smile.

One of the first things your dentist will do to start the process is to check your jaw’s bone density to make sure the implants will be able to stabilize.

Next, he will start drilling into your jaw. Each implant will have its own hole in which to be placed. Each one will be closed over with a stitch, and you will be sent home to heal up for about six week.

Then you head to the implant specialist. He opens up your gums and inserts a tiny screw on top of the implant. Again, you need time to heal. He might be able to give you some temporary caps to help your appearance.

When you return you will have impressions taken of your mouth, and the actual teeth will be made. When these are ready you head back to your regular dentist to have them placed on top of the screws that are now showing.

Dental implants are considered to be “one of the most important advances in dental treatment over the last two decades.” Dental implants allow for the replacement of individual teeth and/or a variety of teeth. Dental implants are defined as, “titanium rods about a centimeter long that are placed inside the jawbone and serve the same purpose as the roots of teeth.” There are both pros and cons when it comes to dental implants. Patients considering getting them should consider both sides of the coin before making a final decision.

Starting with the pros, dental implants once in place can last a person a lifetime which makes them well worth the money. Dental implants are very practical and look as natural as real teeth. Dental implants look a great deal better than other forms of dental fixtures such as traditional, removable bridges and dentures (which can be both loose fitting in the mouth). Dental implants also feel better in the mouth than do bridges and the biting action of the dental implants is every bit as good, in not better than that of bridges.

Dental implants are excellent in their fit and look very striking. Dentists can replace one, two, three and even more teeth in a patient’s mouth or the implant can be used to create supports for dentures. Implants allow a patient to look younger and they can make it possible for bridges to be positioned in the mouth where there is no individual tooth or teeth to connect it to. Dental implants can correct a jaw that is completely toothless. As well dental implants can prevent bone that is toothless from what is called as resorbing (in other words, dissolving and shrinking).

The cons are the downside of dental implants. One of the biggest is the cost of them which is great. Dental implants can run a patient into the thousands. They are a great deal pricier than removable full or partial dentures and fixed bridges. Dental implants are not always covered by insurance policies. It is a very time consuming process that involves frequent visits to the dentist. In the most complicated of cases, patients can be making multiple visits for a period of one to two years.

Dental implant surgery involves a certain degree of pain afterwards as well as bruising and swelling. This will vary from person to person. The false tooth that is positioned on top during the surgery, known as the crown, will likely have to be replaced sometime during a ten to fifteen year period. Dental implants do not always “integrate” or take to a patient’s mouth. In other words, sometimes the surgery is a failure. This can depend on a number of different factors, the most common being the type of implant that was used and the overall health of the patient in question. Most often this surgery is a failure when it comes to specific diseases such as diabetes that is not under control for example, as well as in those individuals who smoke. Breakage of dental implants commonly occurs which are definite cons as well as the occurrence of infections inside the mouth.

1. Surgical placement of the implant into the bone is done in the dentist’s office, using local anesthesia. After surgery, a healing period of approximately four months when the implants fuse to the bone by osseointegration.

2. There is a minor surgical exposure of the top of the implant – the post is attached to the implant. This is to support one tooth or a set of teeth.

3. The last is the restorative phase. The dentist takes impressions and makes a prosthesis that will be attached to the implants. This will require several visits. Once completed, you will have natural looking, strong teeth.

Improvements in dental technology have allowed implants to become almost indistinguishable from the rest of the persons teeth, the natural appearance is greatly aided by the way that the implant is carefully connected with the living bone, this procedure not only makes the implant more visually appealing but it also makes it very functional. For the most part, implants are placed in just one sitting however, it is required for a patient to wait an extended period of time to allow osseointegration.

In a nutshell, osseointegration is a process by which the implants root bonds with the jawbone, this process is also referred to as direct anchorage. It is very common for a person to have to wait three to six months for the implant to heal and become completely incorporated with the supporting bone, at this point the procedure is considered to have been successful. The last step is the placement of a crown.

If during the bonding period osseointegration does not occur within the implant will fail and the dentist will consider another method by which the structure can be repaired or replaced. Let’s take a look at the steps which need to be followed during a dental implant:

Preparation of the jawbone for implantation:

And the implant is normally composed of materials such as titanium which is the fundamental material that is used in the screw and a crown. To begin to procedure a dentist will create a small hole which is referred to as the pilot hole at the place where there is a tooth, the purpose of this whole is to guide the titanium screw which will hold in place the implant. This is perhaps the most complex and dedicate part of the operation because the dentist must consider several factors and use all of his or her expertise in order to avoid damaging the jaw and that the structure as well, information which provides details about the size of the jawbone is crucial during this part.

Placement of the structure:

After the pilot hole has been created it is then widened in order to allow placement of the screw, once this part is done is time to cover the screw with a protective cover which will allow the implant to heal and anchor. The next step is to place a temporary crown which will serve as a template around which the gum will grow and take a natural shape, after the bonding and anchoring period has passed the dentist will then remove the temporary crown in place a permanent one which is the last step of the procedure.

For years, root canals have been viewed as a way to salvage a tooth and allow a patient to keep it longer. Now there is another option- dental implants. Root canal therapy is likened to that of saving a dead tree.

The tree can remain in the ground and stay there, but it is not alive. It is brittle and dry. You could still hang lights on it, but you certainly wouldn’t hang a tree swing or anything that would cause it extreme duress.

Teeth are the same way. When a nerve gets infected, the pulp, blood vessels and nerves are taken out and the canal is filled. Root canals are very complex, with many small branches off the main canal.

Like the dead tree, that tooth ceases to be as strong as it once was. However, the tooth can remain and function. This usually is accomplished with a full coverage restoration around it to give it further strength in the event that it was badly compromised. This fix sometimes can last an additional 15 to 20 years if properly cared for.

Root canals often have to be performed on the molars because they are the “working teeth” with the deep grooves that as younger children, often were difficult to keep clean, Crane said. These teeth were subject to decay, followed by fillings. If silver fillings were involved, they sometimes leaked and broke down over time. For that reason, it’s not uncommon that eventually some of these teeth would be in need of root canal therapy.

It’s important to note that root canals are not a 100 percent guarantee that a patient’s tooth can be salvaged. Sometimes the root canal therapy doesn’t take. If the root canal fails, there are options to re-treat. The success rate for re-treatment of root canal teeth is less than 50 percent.

An apicoectomy may be needed when an infection develops or persists after root canal treatment or re-treatment. Because root canals have many small branches off the main canal, sometimes infected debris can remain in these branches and possibly prevent healing or cause re-infection later. In an apicoectomy, the root tip, or apex, is removed along with the infected tissue. A filling is then placed to seal the end of the root. This procedure sometimes is referred to as endodontic microsurgery because the procedure is done under an operating microscope.

Implants As An Alternative
Implants were considered “cutting edge technology” as early as 10 years ago, so re-treatments remained very good options instead of losing a tooth and then involving bridges and other prosthodontic measures. However, dental implants have earned a good reputation as a viable alternative to re-treatment, due to their successful track record.

In fact, root canal re-treatment often is referred to as “pre-implant” therapy. Patients who are facing possible re-treatment should consult with a restorative dentist to have the broken, old or failing root canal teeth evaluated.

The restorative dentist who understands full mouth rehabilitation and occlusion will look at the forces that area of the bite receives and let you know if surgery and crown lengthening procedures are your best avenue, or if the probability of saving that tooth is not worth the cost and extra procedures for a sometimes 50 percent success rate. They also can determine if you are a candidate for an implant and whether it is cost-effective to place an implant that will last you the rest of your life.

All of these procedures mentioned earlier are available to people who want to restore and keep their teeth, but in cases where “duck tape” no longer is a good option and replacing a tooth makes more sense for the long-term, it’s a good idea to consider dental implants.

Titanium used for knee and hip replacements is a good indication of how people today replace things that are worn out and have outlived their current usefulness. This technology enables patients to continue to experience active, successful lifestyles. The same can be said of dental implants. You can replace what once was and have very successful results.

Any way you look at it, dental implants can be considered as a better solution to the problem of missing teeth.

Esthetic – Dental implants look and feel like your own teeth. They are integrated into the bone structure preventing bone loss and gum recession that often accompany dentures.

Tooth-saving – They don’t sacrifice the quality of your adjacent teeth because they are not altered to support the implant.

Confidence –They are secure and free of the clicks and wobbles of dentures. No more worrying about misplaced dentures and messy pastes and glues.

Reliable – Success rate of dental implants is highly predictable and are considered an excellent option for tooth replacement.

You may have decided that you’d like to replace your missing teeth with dental implants instead of dentures, but aren’t sure what is involved. The short answer to that is that it will depend on the current health of the bone into which the implants will be inserted.

Unless your jawbone is healthy, and has not suffered erosion from infection, gum disease, or previous tooth extraction, you will need to have it built up so that it can hold your implants securely. Dental implant bone grafting is a lengthy process, but can usually be done in your dentist’s office.

Your dentist will use either “autogenous” bone, taken from your own body, or a synthetic or artificial bone substitute. Cow bone is also used frequently for dental implant bone grafting. The addition of this bone will stimulate your body to build new bone around it, but with some synthetic materials the body does not respond by producing new bone, and the synthetic material does the job of securing the dental implant.

Methods Of Dental Implant Bone Grafting

There are several methods of dental implant bone grafting; block bone grafting entails removing bone from another part of the patient’s body. Autogenous bone for a dental implant bone grafting procedure is usually harvested from a patient’s hip or chin, implanted in t he area where the tooth is being replaced, and allowed to heal and grow new bone for at least three, and as long as six months. Any bone taken from areas outside the patient’s mouth will have to be removed in a hospital by an orthopedic surgeon, and transferred to the dentist.

Allograft bone used in dental implant bone grafting is taken from cadavers and under the very close supervision of bone banks. This type of bone harvesting has been going on for years and has supplied bone for thousands of medical and dental procedures with no instances of transmitted disease.

Animal bone used in dental implant bone grafting is known as xenograft, which is the term used for any trans-species transplanting. Both allograft and xenograft dental implant bone are foreign substances to a patient’s body and, very infrequently will trigger a rejection.

Regardless of the source of the dental implant bone graft, the object is to stimulate the body’s bone production in the implant area. One way of making sure the bone growth occurs as quickly as possible for the dentist to insert a “barrier membrane” around the newly grafted dental implant bone. This will keep the body’s more rapidly growing tissues which surround the graft from filling in the areas in which new bone is meant to grow.

Performing a dental implant bone graft with bone expansion requires the dentist to use bone expansion tools to separate sections of the jaw bone and insert the bone implant between them; if the bone is already strong enough to secure it, the dentist may place the implant in the opening instead.

When Bone Grafting Is Not Appropriate

If dental implant bone grafts, bone growth, or bone expansion will not provide sufficient support for a dental implant, the patient may have to have a mold taken of his ore her jawbone and a plate inserted to hole the implants.

If you have plenty of bone tissue and the gums and teeth surrounding the area where you want a dental implant are healthy, then you may not have to concern yourself with dental implant bone grafts. But be prepared for an extended period of procedures and healing, and accept that having dental implants is the most expensive way you will find of replacing your teeth.