Dental implant treatment is a long-lasting way to replace one or more missing teeth caused by injury or disease. It involves using dental implants (metal posts), usually made of titanium, to act as roots for your artificial teeth. This way, you can have stable, natural-looking, and functional teeth.

Ways Dental Implants Improve Your Oral Health

The following are some ways dental implants can improve your oral health:

1. They Help Preserve Jawbone

Dental implants stimulate the jawbone by acting as a root for an artificial tooth. This stimulation encourages the jawbone to remain strong, preventing it from deteriorating over time. 

2. They Improve Your Bite

Replacing missing teeth with dental implants can improve how you bite and chew food, making eating easier and more enjoyable. They are designed to mimic natural teeth, so they fit into your bite easily and securely without impacting other teeth or causing pain when biting down. This makes them more comfortable than dentures, which often slip around and cause pain or irritation.

3. They Help Prevent Tooth Decay

Having tooth gaps makes it more difficult to keep your teeth clean, increasing the risk of tooth decay, cavities, and other oral health issues. With dental implants, you can brush and floss like normal, reducing the risk of these concerns.

How Dental Implants Improve Your Smile

Missing teeth can be unsightly when you smile, talk, or laugh. Dental implants can improve your smile by providing a natural-looking and stable replacement for missing teeth. Unlike removable dentures, you don’t have to worry about them slipping out of place or being visible when you talk or smile, which many people find embarrassing.

Also, the metal posts used in dental implant treatment are designed to blend in with your natural teeth and look indistinguishable from real teeth.

How Dental Implant Procedure Is Done

Here‘s what you can expect to happen during your dental implant treatment:

• Initial consultation. During this appointment, your dentist will discuss the treatment plan and ensure you meet the candidacy requirements for dental implants. They will also perform X-rays and other necessary tests to examine your jawbone, teeth, and gums. At this stage, ask about all your concerns, including the costs and payment plans. You can get more information here.
• Additional procedures. Before your implant surgery, your dentist will perform additional treatments, such as bone graft, sinus lift, and tooth extractions (see tooth extractions in Poughkeepsie NY for more info), if necessary.
• Dental implant surgery. Your dentist will start the procedure by administering local anesthesia. Sometimes they also give sedatives or general anesthesia, depending on the patient’s case. Then they will make an incision in the gum to access the jawbone. After preparing the implant site, they insert the metal post and close the incision with stitches.
• Healing time. During this stage, your dental implant will need time to fuse with the jawbone, called osseointegration. This process can take up to 5 months, and your dentist will monitor it through X-rays or CT scans.
• Attaching the abutment and restoring the teeth. After the implant has successfully fused with your jawbone, your dentist will attach an abutment to it and place your replacement tooth/teeth over it to restore your tooth’s appearance and function.

While it’s generally safe, dental implant treatment is an invasive procedure that requires minor surgery. That’s why you should choose a reputable clinic with experienced dentists, such as Dedicated Dental Studios of Poughkeepsie. Your dentist should also use state-of-the-art equipment and materials to ensure a positive outcome.

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