Dental Implants are an excellent treatment option for people who are missing one or more teeth or if one or more of your teeth have undergone extensive decay that cannot be restored with a root canal treatment or a dental crown. When your dentist informs you that you need a Dental Implant treatment, you might have several questions before agreeing to this surgical treatment option. Here are 6 questions that will give you a fair idea about Dental Implants.
Question-1: What is a Dental Implant?
A Dental Implant is made of titanium alloy which is used to replace the missing tooth. This implant acts as a natural root for your artificial tooth. The dentist places a crown, also called cap, over the implant after the implant has healed and got fixed deep inside the jaw bone.
Question-2: How does a Dental Implant benefit my oral health?
A Dental Implant is designed to fill in for a missing tooth or as a replacement for the damaged tooth. An important advantage of dental implants over other tooth replacement options is that dental implants look, feel and function like a normal tooth.
During the earlier days, a missing tooth was replaced using a partial denture or bridge which is designed to look like a normal tooth but not to function like one. Partial dentures and bridges use the support of adjacent teeth to function. Unlike these treatments, dental implants do not require the support adjacent teeth to function and helps in preserving the underlying jaw bone.
Question-3: What if I don’t replace a missing tooth?
The first difficulty that people face after a tooth loss is chewing difficulty. The second is, due to the lack of stimulus to the jaw bone from the lost teeth, jawbone deterioration can occur. This increases the risk of gum diseases, can destabilize the adjacent teeth and can possibly result in the loss of those neighboring teeth also. The adjacent teeth while they shift places can cause bite problems and facial sagging of skin.
Question-4: How long does an implant last?
The average lifetime of a Dental Implant ranges from 10-15 years. With good oral care, Dental Implants can last for more than 15 years. The life of the implant greatly depends on how well you maintain your oral hygiene.
Question-5: Is the Implant surgery safe?
All surgeries carry basic risk but dental implant surgery is regarded as being extremely safe. Dentists usually perform dental implant surgery only on selected eligible candidates. If you have uncontrolled diabetes or have certain heart conditions and other diseases, which your dentist can evaluate and tell you, you may not be fit for this procedure. A pregnant woman is also not given dental implant during her pregnancy period.
Question-6: How long do the entire Dental Implant and Crown placement take?
This largely depends on the type of implant you are choosing. Immediate loading dental implants allow the patient to get the post and a temporary crown to be placed within the same day. On the other hand, conventional Dental Implants are loaded progressively after the implant has effectively fused with the underlying jaw bone.