Regain Your Smile With Dental Implants

By Snehal Patel, DDS, MD

Dental implants are a tremendous advancement in dentistry. When you have missing teeth, dental implants are an ideal way to replace the teeth. The dental implants are placed into your jaw and serve as a “post” to support a crown. This replaces the tooth with a very natural appearance.

It also functions as a natural tooth as well. The dentist is able to dictate the shape and shade of the crown to make it match with the other surrounding teeth. It is very common to find that people have difficulty differentiating between natural teeth and dental implants.

Dental implants can usually be inserted in the office using only local anesthesia. The procedure often doesn't take more than thirty minutes, and most people return to work the same or following day.

The other options to replace teeth include bridges and removable partial dentures. Bridges cut into existing teeth and “bridge” the gap with an artificial tooth. Removable partial dentures tend to comprise of large, bulky plastic that is molded to your mouth and used to replace your teeth. This is often uncomfortable, unattractive, and may lead to difficulties with chewing and taste.

If you have lost your tooth or are unhappy with the current replacement, contact your dentist to discuss options to regain your smile.