Dental implants lead to fewer visits to the dentist because they're easier to maintain compared to dentures. With dental implants, you never have to worry about them falling out while speaking or laughing in social situations. Also, they feel more comfortable and look more natural than dentures.
Full mouth dental implants are the most secure and durable option for replacing missing teeth, but they're also the most expensive option. If you're less flexible on cost, your dentist may recommend an implant-retained denture for the lower arch of teeth and a suction denture for the upper arch.
Unlike regular dentures, implant dentures are connected to the jawbone directly, like the natural teeth. Therefore, they are more stable and allow patients to eat their favorite foods, including the tough, chewy ones they would have had to forgo if they had traditional dentures.
Helps keep the jawbone from shrinking due to bone loss. Preserves the health of the surrounding bone and gums. Helps keep adjacent (nearby) teeth stable. Improves quality of life.
Dental implants allow for patients to retain 90% of their chewing ability vs. dentures which retain only 20% of chewing ability. What this means in practical terms is that most patients with dental implants are able to eat most anything that can be cut with a fork.
When you have dental implants, you can eat, chew, and talk just as you would with your natural teeth. Even eating foods like apples or corn on the cob will not dislodge or shift your new teeth.
While it may be tempting for new denture wearers to wear them when sleeping, this is not recommended. As with any type of denture, it is necessary to remove implant-supported dentures from the mouth before going to bed at night.
The risks and complications you are taking for dental implants include infection, damage to other teeth, delayed bone healing, nerve damage, prolonged bleeding, jaw fractures and more. If you are willing to take these risks, dental implants might be right for you.
With numbed nerves, you can expect not to feel any pain during your dental implant procedure. You may feel pressure at times, but it should not cause you discomfort. For patients who have anxiety with dental procedures, oral sedation is available.
A tooth extraction is major oral surgery. If you are planning to get a dental implants after a tooth extraction, you will typically need to wait a minimum of 10 weeks after the tooth extraction before dental implants can be placed.
Dentures are less expensive than implants. Dentures can be placed in by patients who have experienced bone and gum loss (unlike implants, which must be anchored to bone). The procedure for fitting dentures is non-invasive. Also, drilling into the bone–a part of the implant process–is not required for dentures.
With proper care and maintenance, dental implants can last a lifetime. The denture may need to be replaced every 20 years or so due to normal wear and tear but a traditional denture will likely need to be replaced at least every 10 years due to your bone structure changes.
Dentures replace the support in your face, once created by your natural teeth, to help keep your facial appearance and prevent you from looking older. The loss of teeth also means oral bone structure will begin to perish. Dentures decrease the rate at which these bones disintegrate.
If you're missing all your teeth, dental implants are the optimal choice for restoring your mouth to full functionality. Dental implants are the modern standard of care for tooth replacement—no matter if it's one tooth or all your teeth. Without teeth, there are no tooth roots in the jawbone to stimulate bone growth.
The number of implants required to anchor an upper or lower denture generally ranges from two to eight, but this figure can vary depending on the details of your unique treatment plan.
In many cases, the cost of treatment is just slightly higher than that of more traditional dental procedures. Dental implants are also a permanent replacement for lost teeth, making them a cost-effective option in the long run. And a good investment for individuals who want to avoid dental problems in the future.
In general, there are three steps involved in the dental implant procedures. First, the implant itself is placed into the jawbone. Next, the abutment is added to the implant, which is where the artificial tooth will be connected. Finally, the prosthetic tooth, or crown, is placed onto the abutment.
Bad bite – If your tooth implant hasn't been aligned correctly into your jawbone, then you may experience pain in the bone that's around it. Consequently when you bite down, the excess force may push the implant further into the bone, causing discomfort. This occurs when you're chewing or afterwards.
The Implant Process
It will take your dentist around an hour per implant. Your next appointment will be four to six months later. Now, the dentist will decide whether your implant is ready to receive the abutment and crown that complete the process.
Certain pre-existing health conditions can cause slower healing and interfere with the dental implant fusing or integrating with the jaw bone. If you currently experience health conditions such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, or an autoimmune disease, this slower healing can cause the implant to fail.
Unlike a crown placed on top of a tooth, there is no space where any food can get trapped under a dental implant.
To keep your dental implant securely in place for decades to come, a small titanium post will be placed into your jawbone. Since this requires oral surgery, it's completely natural to feel a little tired or sore afterwards. After all, your mouth needs time to adapt to the major change it just underwent.
Your jaw and mouth may feel somewhat numb or sore from the procedure. In order to give your jaw the rest that it needs, stick to a diet of soft foods that don't require much chewing. These foods should be easy to eat like soup, applesauce, oatmeal, scrambled eggs, etc.