Dental Implants Richardson

What Are Dental Implants?

Unlike traditional dentures and bridges that just sit atop the gums, dental implants take it a step further by recreating the entire structure of one or more missing teeth. The implant itself is a titanium post that we surgically insert into your jaw, replicating the root of your tooth. After placement, the post becomes one with your jawbone in a process called osseointegration. Then, a metal attachment called an abutment is placed, allowing us to secure your replacement tooth or teeth into place.

Dental implants are the only tooth replacement solution that can do this, and it’s what helps them to feel, function, and look just as natural as your original pearly whites. For these reasons and many more, our dentists tend to recommend dental implants for all qualified patients.

Who Dental Implants Can Help

You only need three things to be a candidate for implants: good dental health, stable overall health, and a healthy jawbone to safely support the new roots. Our team will carefully examine your smile during your consultation and confirm these things. Once you have been approved for the treatment, the kind of restoration we place on top of your implant(s) will be based on your particular situation:

• Missing One Tooth
  Instead of altering two healthy teeth to support a bridge, like we would have in the past, we can now position a single implant root and crown in the gap between two teeth without disturbing them at all.
• Missing Multiple Teeth
  Multiple dental implant crowns and even an implant partial denture can replace nonconsecutive missing teeth throughout the mouth, but for patients with more than one missing tooth in a row, just two implants can be used to support a bridge.
• Missing All Teeth
  Four to six strategically-placed implants can be used to bring back an entire row of teeth at the same time. Because implant prosthetics are secured directly to the jawbone, they don’t slip and slide around the mouth like traditional removable dentures, plus they bring back much of a patient’s original bite force.

Benefits of Dental Implants

• One-of-a-Kind Solution:
  Dental implants bring back the whole tooth, both above and below the gumline. A small titanium post is placed directly into the jawbone to support a new tooth. Thanks to this new root, patients can trust their implant to always stay in place and never shift around unexpectedly.
• Natural-Looking:
  Dental implants are always topped with custom-made porcelain restorations designed to look, feel, and function like your original teeth, and they also don’t have any extra attachments needed to keep them stable.
• Better for the Entire Smile:
  Implants not only replace the teeth, but they also help preserve the jawbone. They stimulate renewed blood flow to the area to keep it strong, maintaining the foundation for the remaining teeth while also protecting the overall shape of a patient’s face.
• Built to Last:
  With just regular oral hygiene and routine dental visits, an implant can be trusted to last for multiple decades or even a lifetime.

Understanding the Cost of Dental Implants

Since dental implants can be paired with so many kinds of restorations to help with different degrees of tooth loss, the overall cost can vary from person to person. However, since they last so much longer compared to traditional bridges and dentures (30 or more years vs 5 to 7 years), they tend to be the better financial choice overall despite their larger upfront price. This means that despite a higher initial cost, dental implants end up being a far more cost-effective option if you’re committed to your oral hygiene!