Due to injury or disease, patients can lose one or more teeth in various ways. While there are several restorative options available, patients seeking a more permanent replacement for missing teeth should consider dental implants in New Bern, NC.
What Is a Dental Implant?
Dental implants are a permanent treatment for missing teeth. Usually made of titanium, dental implants will replace the root of an absent tooth. They provide a solid foundation for replacement teeth, like a crown or a bridge.
Dental implants are made to match the look and feel of your natural teeth, which is one of their many convenient benefits. They require the same type of care as your natural teeth, including daily brushing, regular flossing, rinsing, and dental checkups.
Who Can Benefit from Dental Implants?
Candidates for implants can include anyone with missing teeth. Whether patients are missing one or many teeth, their dentists can offer a variety of implant options, such as an “All-on-Four” implant for patients missing all of their upper or lower teeth.
Patients must be able to undergo oral surgery or tooth extractions, have healthy gums, and have sufficient bone to support the implants to qualify for this treatment. Smokers and patients with chronic illnesses will need to be assessed on an individual basis.
How Can Implants Help My Smile?
There are many benefits to dental implants that can help restore normal oral function and improve the patient’s health. Dental implants help retain the look and feel of your natural teeth and smile. This can boost a patient’s self-esteem and overall confidence.
In addition to their many cosmetic benefits, dental implants positively impact a patient’s overall health. Because a dental implant acts as a tooth root substitute, it keeps the adjacent teeth stable, preserves the health of the gums, and maintains the structure of the jawbone.
When a tooth is missing, the surrounding teeth can shift, and over time, the jawbone will begin to break down. Dental implants will help maintain the mouth’s structural integrity.
How Do Implants Compare to Dentures?
If you would like a permanent tooth replacement, you can ask your dentist about upgrading your removable dentures to dental implants. Patients with secure implants will not have to worry about seeking new appliances if their dentures have worn down.
These patients will also enjoy the added comfort and convenience of dental implants. Dentures can slip and shift out of place while eating, causing problems. Certain foods can get stuck under the dentures, too, causing irritation and discomfort. Dental implants allow the patient to eat and chew normally without this hassle.
While a patient with dentures may have to worry about messy adhesives, dental implants remove such issues. Dentists surgically place dental implants in the jaw, and over time, the implant will fuse with the bone, eliminating the need for denture adhesives.
With poorly fitting dentures, patients often notice issues with speech. When dentures slip, it may cause a patient to mumble or to have slurred speech. With dental implants, there is no slipping, so a patient can speak, sing, or shout without concern.
