Dental Implants
Are your missing teeth preventing you from eating the foods you like? Speaking with confidence? Smiling? If so, dental implants may be the permanent solution you’ve been looking for.
What are Dental Implants?
Dental implants are small titanium posts surgically implanted into your jaw bone that replace missing tooth roots, helping to preserve the bone in your jaw and the original shape of your face. Best of all, dental implants look, feel and function so much like your natural teeth, you’ll forget that you even lost a tooth at all!
The implant acts like the root of a natural tooth and bone actually forms around a special coating on the implant to hold the implant firmly in place. This process is referred to as ‘osseointegration’. A crown – with the look, feel, and function of a natural tooth – is then affixed to an abutment which is connected to the implant. The ‘abutment’ is simply a small connecting piece between the implant and the crown.
In cases where there are multiple missing teeth, or where the patient has previously had dentures, multiple implants are placed in the mouth to allow for implant-supported crowns or bridges, ball abutment retained over-dentures, and/or bar-supported over dentures.
The success rate for dental implants is very high. And with proper care, good dental hygiene and a healthy lifestyle, it is rare that implants will fail. Over the past 30 years, hundreds of thousands of implants have been placed in patients. Even today, many of the *original* implants are still functioning without problems! Technology and procedures have advanced significantly since the first implants were placed. The success rate for implants is now in the 95%+ range. Some reasons for failed implants can be attributed to an unhealthy lifestyle (smoking), and/or to poor dental hygiene.
What Types of Dental Implants are there?
Dental Implant are extremely versatile. They can be used in many different ways to restore form, function and appearance to your smile. At South Calgary Periodontal, we offer the following types of Dental Implants:
- Single Tooth Replacement
- Multiple Teeth Replacement
- Implant Supported Dentures
- Full Arch Replacement
What are the benefits of Dental Implants?
- There is a significant improvement in the overall quality of life for patients who have implant-supported or retained dentures, as opposed to standard or conventional (free-floating) dentures.
- Implants maintain, or realign, facial structure and profile while preserving bone.
- Dental Implants are easy to clean and do not decay.
- Implants help to preserve adjacent healthy (natural) teeth. With an implant-supported bridge, there is no need to stress or traumatize adjacent natural teeth in order to hold the bridge in place. Traditional removable partial dentures also place stress forces on the remaining natural teeth.
- Implant-supported crowns and bridges have a longer functioning life than conventional crowns and bridges placed over a natural tooth structure.
- Implants help to prevent the appearance of premature aging due to bone loss. Osteoporosis can accelerate bone loss with patients using standard or conventional dentures.
- Patients who wear conventional full dentures often experience difficulty eating, speaking and smiling. Implant-supported dentures virtually eliminate embarrassing denture slippage. In effect, the implant anchors the dentures.
- Implants are cost effective when taking into account the longevity of the implant.
At South Calgary Periodontal Group, we are always welcoming new patients.
Call us at (403) 278-5446 to book your Dental Implant consultation appointment today!