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Used to replace a single missing tooth, dental implants can restore and beautify your entire smile. Living with a missing tooth can be limiting, even embarrassing. If you have a space from a missing tooth, a dental implant can have profound effect on your life. Besides the self-conscious factor, a missing tooth can have negative consequences to your oral health. The gap can allow: • The other teeth in your mouth to shift • Change your bite • Result in a speech impediment • Lead to temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder • For an increase risk of tooth decay and gum disease Dental implants offer a more permanent solution over dental bridges and dentures. Periodontal gum disease can cause tooth loss, and therefore diminish your self-esteem and self-confidence. Implants are an ideal choice for anyone who has good oral health and has lost a tooth because of an accident or due to periodontal disease. A single-tooth dental implant relies on your adjacent teeth for support, and can be a tooth-saving solution in many ways. If you experience any of the following with your dentures or bridge, you may want to consider a dental implant: • When eating, your dentures shift and make embarrassing clicking noises • You wish you could bite in to an apple more confidently • You have experienced bone loss or gum recession since wearing a bridge or dentures • You feel like you’re natural smile is gone forever • When talking, your bridge or dentures shift, making it uncomfortable to speak • Your bridge or dentures have cracked, resulting in an uncomfortable fit • You are embarrassed to smile As technology has advanced in the past 10 years, dental implants have evolved. The materials used to create implants have become stronger, and dental implant education is now better than ever. The following are a few of the major benefits of dental implants, compared to dentures or bridges: • Increased confidence—because they bond to your natural adjacent teeth, dental implants are more secure than bridges or dentures. This means you no longer have to worry about your dental wear slipping or cracking while you eat or speak. • Appearance—dental implants are more aesthetically pleasing, because they are situated on your bone’s structure, and will help prevent future bone loss and gum recession. Dental implants look and feel more like your natural teeth, as opposed to dentures and bridges. • Reliability—success rates for dental implants are incredibly high. The lifetime of a dental implant can also last for decades, if you take proper care of them. By practicing good oral hygiene, your dental implants could even last you the rest of your life. • Comfort—dental implants eliminate the pain and discomfort associated with full or partial dentures. Because dentures sit on top of the jawbone and gums, the natural shrinkage of your jawbone alters the fit of your dentures. This can result in a slipping or rocking sensation. Exposed nerves and irritation of the gum tissue may add to the discomfort. • Improved speech—with improperly fitting dentures, you teeth are susceptible to slipping. Consequently, your facial muscles can become tense, in an attempt to hold your teeth in place. This often results in mumbling, slurred speech or clicking noises. A dental implant can allow you to speak with confidence, in a relaxed, natural tone. • Improved eating—the average denture patient with an excellent fitting denture eats at a 15 to 20 percent efficiency, compared to a person with natural teeth. As your jawbone shrinks, your chewing efficiency is reduced even more, making it difficult to eat your favorite foods. Dental implants can restore your chewing efficiency, and allow you to once again enjoy the foods you love. If you are considering cosmetic dentistry in San Antonio or the surrounding area, please call or e-mail us today to schedule your initial consultation with Dr. Brian Hale.
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