Losing a tooth, or a number of teeth, can be devastating for anyone and this is especially the case where the tooth is one of the visible ones at the front. When this happens, a patient is left with a few options and one of these is simply to leave a gap. However, this can have repercussions, the most obvious of these being the way it can affect your smile. Unfortunately, even a gap towards the back of the mouth can create problems.
When a tooth is lost, we often place an additional burden on other teeth to try to compensate. In some cases this will mean using teeth that weren’t designed for the role and which can lead to premature damage. A missing tooth also leaves a gap which the surrounding teeth will gradually move into and over a period of time, your teeth can start to become crooked. It is much better then, to replace any missing teeth.
At the Clarence Dental Practice, there are three key options available to do this which we'll discuss in today's blog.
Dentures are fairly well known and have been used, perhaps for hundreds of years, in at least a rudimentary way. In recent times they have been the ‘go to’ option for replacing missing teeth and have certainly improved in appearance and quality over that time.
While improvements have been made, some people still find that wearing dentures isn’t without its problems. They can sometimes move around in the mouth, making eating, and sometimes speech, quite difficult, and can sometimes be uncomfortable too as they rub against the gums. They are also quite fiddly to clean and need removal from the mouth to do so.
Dentures are an option, of course, but there are more secure and stable options available.
A dental bridge does what the name suggests, it ‘bridges’ the gap between teeth. The bridge contains replacement teeth for those that have been lost, plus a crown on either end for securing purposes. One of the biggest deterrents to having this for many people is that in order to attach the crown, the teeth either side of the missing teeth have to be shaped and prepared so that the crown can be attached. While this does provide more stability than dentures, it perhaps isn’t surprising that a lot of people don’t want anything done to teeth that are healthy. Bridges can also be difficult to clean, especially beneath them.
We have saved what we consider to be the best, for last. Dental implants are a more recent tooth replacement method but one that is now widely used and is rapidly growing in popularity. While this procedure does require some invasive dental work, it will provide you with a strong, secure and stable replacement tooth. Not only that, but one that is straightforward to clean, needing no removal from the mouth as dentures do. It can also last for twenty years or more, providing that you look after it as advised.
The key factor that we believe makes the latest dental implants the best solution is that, unlike the previous two options, it not only replaces the crown part of the tooth, but the tooth root also. In fact, technically speaking, the dental implant IS the replacement tooth root. This is placed into the jawbone and then allowed to ‘fuse’ with the bone for a period of time, a process known as osseointegration. Once this has occurred, the implant will be securely in place. An abutment is then added and this is used to attach the final part, the crown, to it.
Although this does require a detailed dental procedure and some care needs to be taken during the osseointegration period, patients find that their new tooth implant is as close to the real thing as possible. Unlike with dentures, you won’t have to be concerned whether your replacement tooth, or teeth, can handle certain foods and you can eat whatever you want without the worry about it moving around.
Cleaning the implant is straightforward too. You simply brush and floss your teeth and also see the our hygienist every six months for routine checks.
We hope that today’s blog has provided you with a useful overview of your options for replacing any missing teeth here in Staines. We will be looking in more detail at dental implants in particular in future blogs. If you feel that you might benefit from having implants and have further questions about them, why not contact our Staines dental practice to arrange a consultation to discuss this further?
If you would like to contact us to arrange a consultation or for any other related matter, you can call the Clarence Dental Practice on 01784 463695. We look forward to speaking to you!
Address: 21a Clarence Street, Staines upon Thames, Surrey, TW18 4SU
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