In mid-2011, I took a course with one of the top implant lecturers in the country. Afterwards, I realized that it had been a while since I had written about implants in my newsletter. So here goes:

What is an implant?
Put simply, an implant is a titanium replacement for the root of a missing tooth (i.e., a tooth which was extracted or never came in). Just as people can get a hip or knee replacement made of titanium, you can get a tooth replacement made out of titanium.

Think of a tooth as if it’s a house; you can’t have a house without a solid foundation. Since implants actually fuse to bone, they provide that solid foundation.

Just as with a house, you have to build upon the foundation to have something usable. So, the surgeon’s job is to place the implant foundation. Once that site has healed (usually about 8 to 12 weeks), *my job *is to “build a first floor” on the implant by using something called an abutment. The abutment is shaped a little like a natural tooth; when I take an impression of the abutment, my lab can make a crown to fit over the abutment as the second floor of the house.

What are the advantages of an implant?
Implants can replace teeth which have been absent for many years. They can be used to anchor partial or complete dentures and make them much more stable. They are MUCH more comfortable and natural-feeling than dentures; if you replace missing teeth with implants, you may be able to *throw away your present partial denture and replace it with something that doesn’t have to be removed.

The #1 cause for crowns to fail is decay (i.e., develop a cavity) where the crown meets your natural tooth. This is impossible with an implant, since titanium can’t get tooth decay. So, implant-supported crowns tend to be free of many problems that can affect crowns built on natural teeth.

In fact, some insurance companies now cover implants instead of bridges to replace missing teeth. Why? Implants have a much higher success rate, and the insurance companies like anything that saves them money!

Implant placement is surprisingly gentle. In fact, I have never had a patient who regretted his or her implant decision because of pain.

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    Phone: 610-891-1718 Fax: 610-891-9048
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