Dental Implant Tooth Replacement

Losing a tooth by accident or by extraction is not the end of the matter. When a tooth is missing, the resulting gap will allow nearby teeth to tilt or drift from their normal position, and the teeth above or below the gap will move downward. The loss of just a single tooth can set a course that can destroy an entire mouth. Just like two gears of a car that are not properly aligned, pretty soon you've got a whole lot of problems.

Aside from the obvious cosmetic problem, the changed positions of these teeth can lead to severe bite problems causing jaw pain and headaches.

Today's replacement teeth are ideally dental implants, which are titanium alloy tooth root replacements that are surgically implanted in the jawbone by an oral surgeon or a periodontist. Then Dr. Chellis carefully constructs a Dental Implant-supported Crown or Implant-supported bridge to replace the missing tooth or teeth, to prevent teeth from shifting and thereby causing further tooth loss.

This amazing technology has been around now for several decades. In fact, some patients in the Seattle area have had dental implants for more than 40 years. Hundreds of thousands of dental implants have been inserted with more than a 95% success rate, in a non-smoking individual. All other metal implants in the body (including hips and knees) are the result of the dental implant technology.

A good rule-of-thumb is to place one implant for each tooth replaced. Other decisive factors for the number of implants needed for success is the quality and quantity of the patient's bone. Equally as important are the existing anatomy of the bone and the financial resources of the patient. (At Smile Secrets, we try not to let money get in the way of good dentistry.) Placing enough implants to restore teeth is vitally important to the long-term success of the restoration. Simply stated, the most costly mistake is to have an implant fail because not enough implants are placed to support the teeth.

As the body heals for approximately two to six months after the surgery, the bone around the implant fuses to the implant through a process called osseointegration. The length of the healing time is based on the quality and quantity of bone, as well as the type of implant placed. After adequate healing is allowed to occur, the implant can be used to support a crown, bridge, or denture.

Once in place, the an implant crown will look, feel, and function like a natural tooth. Implants are cleaned and flossed just like natural teeth. Although dental implants will not decay, they do require impeccable oral hygiene to keep the bone healthy around it. With good oral hygiene, an implant can last a lifetime.

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