When you sustain the loss of one or more teeth, whether due to poor oral hygiene or facial trauma, then you need to discuss replacement options. Dental implants offer replacement that looks natural and function like actual teeth. In today’s blog, your Santa Rosa, CA, oral and maxillofacial surgeons talk about the benefits of dental implants.
The Causes of Tooth Loss
Why do we lose our natural teeth? For some, this could be related to tooth decay or an infected tooth. Injuries could be responsible too. But the most common factor is periodontitis, the advanced stage of gum disease. Regardless of the cause, once you lose natural teeth you should contact our team right away to discuss replacement options!
The Dangers for Your Oral Health
When you have missing teeth, this could limit your meal options and deprive you of essential nutrients. You could have issues speaking clearly too, and find yourself more vulnerable to issues like TMJ disorder and bruxism (teeth grinding). Missing teeth also leave behind gaps that cause misalignment to occur, changing the appearance of your smile and boosting the risk of cavities and gum disease. As the jawbone breaks down due to the lack of calcium and phosphorus being provided to the areas with missing roots, the jaw breaks down to cause an older appearance and further tooth loss. But we can help stop these complications with the placement of one or more dental implants.
Planning Dental Implant Placement
To begin, we will need to conduct a detailed exam with advanced technology, such as digital x-rays and intraoral cameras. These systems allow us to assess the cause and severity of the tooth loss, and assess the strength of the jawbone. We can then place the angle, position, and depth to insert your new dental implant posts. We want to ensure they can last for decades to come and offer durable and lifelike tooth replacement, which means planning the procedure in detail.
Jawbone Grafting and Sinus Lifts
What if your tooth loss has significantly reduced the strength of your jawbone, and you can’t support one or more dental implants? Well, our team can use oral surgery to strengthen the weakened portions of your smile. With jawbone grafting, we add new structures to the lower jaw to fortify it so you can receive dental implants. For the upper jaw, we can conduct a sinus lift to raise the sinus floor and uncover new structures that can make implant placement possible. However, with options like All-On-Four, we may be able to support a full set of dentures in weakened jaws without the need for these procedures!
Dental Implants
Each dental implant is a biocompatible titanium post that is screw-like in appearance. This portion is what we surgically insert into the jaw, where it bonds with the bone structure through osseointegration. Once this occurs, we will attach an abutment to the post that extends above the gum line. This enables us to attach the crown portion, the part people see when you smile and the part that makes you able to enjoy your favorite meals again. Since the implant potions act as new roots, this means our new teeth can stay in place for decades to come, possibly even a lifetime, with proper care and attention.
Fixed Dentures
What if you have more than one missing tooth? If you have a large gap of two to four missing teeth, we could secure a bridge with one or two dental implants. If you have lost most of your teeth, we can extract the last few and then insert as little as four posts per arch to support a set of dentures. You will be able to smile with confidence and enjoy optimal oral health again! These don’t need to be removed for soaking or cleaning, and you care for them as you would natural teeth. They last for decades to come, while removable options could require replacement in as little as five years.
If you have any questions about how our team will support new teeth with our dental implants, or if you have gaps in your smile that need attention, then contact our team today to learn more!
Learn More About Tooth Replacement in Santa Rosa, CA
We would like to help you enjoy strong and full smiles, with results that can last decades. To learn more about how our team can tackle minor or severe cases of tooth loss, then give us a call at Santa Rosa Oral Surgery at (707)545-4625 today!
