Lose That Toothless Grin!

In days gone by, many people used to lose teeth because of severe decay. Vastly improved dentistry and increased dental education for the public have made that easily avoidable, so that most of us know to brush and floss daily and go for at least annual check-ups.

But accidents still happen, whether sports accidents, road accidents, falls etc. and some people do lose teeth. When you lose a tooth, you have two gaps:
• The tooth gap
• The tooth root gap

Dentures and bridges do a good job of filling the tooth gap, and that is how most people have dealt with their lost tooth or teeth. But what about the gap in the jawbone? Does it just stay there for the rest of your life? No, it doesn’t. Nature abhors gaps in the jawbone as well as vacuums.

Dental Deterioration Caused by Missing Teeth
1. Teeth surrounding the gap will gradually move to fill it. That could, probably would, put them out of alignment, which could cause problems with your bite. The dental term is your occlusion – meaning the way the upper and lower teeth meet when you close your mouth. Dentures and bridges prevent this tooth migration and protect your bite.
2. Bone tissue around the gap left by the missing root will gradually shrink to fill that gap. This will distort the jawline and your facial shape, making your look older. We all know that shrunken look of a “toothless crone” – it has been cartooned mercilessly, and you can see it in photos taken in the Depression era.

How Dental Implants Work
The most commonly-used type of implant looks like a metal cylinder or screw. It’s made of titanium and has ridges running around it for the bone tissue to grow into. If your lost tooth was recently lost, your cosmetic dentist can inserts the implant into the gap left in the jawbone. If some time has gone by and the bone has already shrunk to fill the gap, surgery can be done to create a place for the implant.

So clearly, it’s better to have implants done right away if you lose a tooth. The bone takes several months to grow in closely around the implant and incorporate it into itself. When this is completed, you would go for another visit, so your cosmetic dentist can do a second, but minor, surgery. He or she will expose the top of the implant (covered by gum tissue) and attach an abutment to hold a new tooth.

The gum tissue heals up in a few weeks, after which your dentist will attach a shiny white porcelain tooth to the abutment. Now you have both gaps nicely filled, and can maintain the health of your bite. You can also eat anything you like. As long as you continue with good daily hygiene and go for regular check-ups and professional cleaning, your implant and porcelain tooth will last indefinitely.

The secret to a successful dental implant procedure and to ongoing dental health and beauty is choosing a fully-qualified cosmetic dentist. Cosmetic dentistry takes a new approach to you, the patient. Rather than leaving you in a dusty waiting room, leafing through old magazines, a cosmetic dentist will attend to you quickly. You’ll be pampered with pillows and blankets, headphones for movies or music, virtually painless administration of local anesthetic, oral sedation if you’re feeling anxious, and a list of other amenities, depending on which particular dentist you choose. Your comfort and satisfaction will be their first priority.