A dental implant seamlessly replaces a missing tooth, restoring your appearance and ability to chew, speak, and smile. It’s made with a biocompatible titanium root, which bonds to your jawbone with a process called osseointegration. The root anchors a synthetic tooth that looks and feels real. Dr. Kaur is skilled in placing and restoring dental implants.
Dental Implant Advantages
There are other options for replacing a tooth, such as a bridge or a partial denture. Or, if you’re missing all your teeth, Dr. Kaur can create a custom set of full dentures to restore your smile. However, dental implants are the gold standard because they foster long-term oral health, and they feel and look real. You won’t be able to tell the difference between implants and your natural teeth when you’re eating, talking, and laughing. That can’t be said for removable replacements.
How do implants support your oral health? When you lose a tooth, your jawbone begins to shrink. If the tooth is gone, your body will resorb some of that jawbone and use its minerals elsewhere. If you have lost many teeth, the effect on your face can be profound, giving it a sunken appearance. An implant, however, will signal to your body that the bone is still needed and will prevent it from shrinking.
The Dental Implant Process
The first step is to surgically place the implant fixture in your jawbone. Identifying the exact placement for the implant is critical for its success, and careful diagnosis is needed. However, the actual surgery isn’t complicated.
Once the implant is placed, it needs several months to bond to the bone—a process called osseointegration. If the implant is stressed prematurely, it can weaken and come loose. But once it has bonded, it is ready for the placement of the abutment and then the ceramic crown over the abutment (see the drawing above).
Dr. Kaur prefers Astra implants, which use a patented OsseoSpeed implant surface of chemically modified titanium to foster fast bone healing and osseointegration. When the implant has healed, she will place a strong, beautiful zirconia crown that matches your other teeth in color and shape.
Implant Dentures versus Traditional Dentures
While dentures are better than missing teeth, they have a significant drawback. Because they’re not connected to your jawbone, you can’t exert your full bite force through them. They may slip or be unstable, depending on how well they fit and the natural shape of your mouth. This is why Dr. Kaur recommends implant-supported dentures. Depending on your needs and budget, Dr. Kaur can construct a new smile completely or partially supported by implants, offering significant advantages over typical dentures. The implants send a piezoelectric signal to your jawbone, which tells your body that you still need that bone and halts facial collapse.
Caring for Dental Implants
If you protect your dental implants, they can last for many years. Remember to:
- Brush twice a day
- Floss between your teeth
- Keep up with regular dental check-ups and cleanings
To schedule an appointment with Dr. Kaur and find out if you’re a candidate for dental implants, just call our office at (480) 283-0733. You’re also welcome to fill out our appointment request form here, and we will call you back.