Dental Implants in Chestnut Hill
State of the Art Cosmetic Dentistry
If you have missing teeth, dental implants offer a unique cosmetic dentist-approved tooth replacement option to restore the look and function of your smile. Durable, effective, and aesthetically pleasing, implants are the only treatment available for a missing tooth that prevents the loss of bone mass in your jaw. Our experienced dental team at The Dental Office At Chestnut Hill proudly offers the industry’s latest dental implant technology to patients in Chestnut Hill, MA and the surrounding areas. Learn more about dental implants below, and contact our office at (617) 969-8558 to schedule an appointment with us today!
How Implants Compare to Traditional Dentures
Dentures have been a solution for missing teeth for centuries, but they have a few notable flaws. When we use our own teeth to chew, it stimulates the jaw bone and keeps it strong. Dentures aren’t very effective at providing this stimulation, resulting in oral health problems like bone loss in the jaws. This, in turn, can lead to the dentures not fitting very well, so they can slip and fall out easily and leave the gums feeling sore.
Implants, on the other hand, are artificial teeth that are placed into the jawbone and function the same way as the roots of teeth. Implants greatly reduce the risk of bone loss and they won’t slip and slide while you’re trying to chew your food or have an engaging conversation. Taking care of implants is the same as taking care of natural teeth. True, the price tag can be higher with implants than dentures, but that’s pretty much the only advantage removable dentures have as replacement teeth. Implants can replace individual teeth or they can be used as anchors to support full or partial dentures.
About Dental Implants
Dental implants continue to grow in popularity as tooth implant technology and treatment options improve. Today’s implants offer both a brilliant cosmetic solution to missing teeth, as well as a treatment that will improve your oral health. Dental implants work via a process called osseointegration. First, a small titanium post is surgically inserted into the jaw through the gum line. Over time, the natural bone of your jaw fuses with the titanium post of your implant, mimicking the natural roots of your teeth. Once bone fusion has occurred, our dental professionals will add a permanent, natural-looking tooth.
The Benefits Of Dental Implants
Improved appearance and overall self-esteem: Dental implants look and feel like your own teeth because they permanently fuse with the bone. They give you back your smile and help you feel confident in yourself with a result any cosmetic dentist would approve!
Improved speech: With dentures, the teeth can slip and slide in the mouth, causing slurring or mumbling. With dental implants, you speak without the worry that teeth might slip.
Improved comfort and convenience: Because they become part of you, there is no more embarrassing inconvenience of removing dentures or the need for messy adhesives to keep them in place.
Easier eating: Sliding dentures can make chewing especially difficult. Dental implants function like your own teeth, allowing you to eat your favorite foods without pain. Teeth are supported by stable and robust implant posts that have fused with your jawbone.
Improved oral health: Dental implants don’t require attachment to other teeth, as a tooth-supported bridge does. Because nearby teeth don’t support the implant, your original teeth are left intact, improving long-term oral health.
Extremely durable and strong: while a dental bridge lasts an average of 10.1 years, dental implants remain 95% successful over 20 years or more.
Stopping bone loss: A natural tooth root provides continual stimulation to the bone surrounding it through force whenever you bite down or chew with that tooth. If the tooth is absent, this stimulation is lost, and the bone recedes. By replacing your tooth root with a dental implant post, stimulation is restored to your jawbone, halting further bone loss.
Healthy remaining natural teeth: Restoring missing teeth with dental implants protects your remaining teeth by preventing them from moving out of position and maintaining your natural bite.
Our dental team can successfully place dental implants even if you have lost bone mass in your jaw, thanks to the help of bone graft techniques.
The Dental Implant Procedure: What to Expect
Your dental implant procedure will begin with a meeting between you and our dental team to discuss your individual needs and goals and formulate a surgical plan going forward. The first surgical step is the placement of the titanium root implant(s), which is placed into the jawbone once you are administered local anesthesia. It will take anywhere from 6-12 weeks for your jawbone to fuse to the implant. During this time, you will wear a temporary replacement tooth or set of teeth. Once your bone has properly fused to the implant, our dental team will affix permanent pontics, crowns, or bridgework to your implant.
Who Can Get Dental Implants?
Anyone with healthy gums and an adequate amount of jawbone in which to hold the implant is a great candidate. Commitment to good oral hygiene is a must. Those who smoke heavily or suffer from certain chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disease or diabetes, may or may not qualify, depending on the doctor’s discretion.
Our Chestnut Hill, MA office is available to answer all your questions regarding dental implants. We recommend setting up an appointment with our team, who specializes in the placement and restoration of dental implants.