Dental Implants For Edentulous Patients

By Richard Hughes, DDS, FACS

Richard E. Hughes, DDS

. http://www.erhughesdds.com/

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Dental Implants For Edentulous Patients

Edentulous means lacking teeth. The complete loss of teeth (edentulism) due to gum disease and tooth decay can have severe consequences on your health. Complete dentures are an unacceptable substitute for natural teeth due to slippage, discomfort and inefficient chewing. Dental implants for endetulous patients are typically the best solution.

Edentulism is a complex condition due to the interaction between the disease and aspects that do not depend on the disease itself, such as biologic and patient factors. Edentulism presents socioeconomic problems to the worldwide health care systems.

How does edentualism impact one’s health?

Numerous studies have proved that the absence of teeth can impact the systemic health of patients in the following ways:

• Patients may reduce consumption of fruits and vegetables, fiber and carotene and the may increase the consumption of foods rich in cholesterol and saturated fats. This may lead to cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, stroke, aortic valve sclerosis and coronary problems.
• There may be an increase in gastric and duodenal ulcers, pancreatic tumors, upper gastrointestinal tract tumors and kidney problems due to the lack of antioxidants that control the inflammatory cascade.
• There is an increased risk of insulin resistance and type-2 diabetes, due to the increases fat and long chain carbohydrate consumption.
• People may decrease daily physical and social activity.
• People may develop sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea.

Diet appears to play a decisive role in the relationship between edentulism and general health. There are studies that report a significant decrease in blood concentrations in vitamins A, C, folate and beta carotene in edentulous versus those with teeth.

It is abundantly clear that a compromised or absent dentition has consequences, such as the restriction on the choice of foods, choking on food, poor digestion, alteration of taste, change in chewing efficiency, discomfort and premature facial aging. The self-image issues associated with edentulism adversely impact on ones socialization.

Studies show that 39% of the elderly edentulous patients cannot eat the food they want, 29% report a decrease in satisfaction from food and 14% avoid eating with other people.

Dental implant treatment can tremendously improve all the above-mentioned issues.

You deserve the best, so take a new bite out of life.