Teeth can be lost due to a variety of dental issues: tooth decay, gum disease, bone loss and traumas all contribute to a large number of lost teeth. Now an integral part of dental practice, dental implants meet the highest standard of reconstructive dentistry available from the office of Rock Creek Dental. Our dentist, Dr. Matson, may replace one tooth, many teeth or complete arches using implant treatments.
How Implants Function
A dental implant consists of two parts. The first part is a titanium screw designed for attaching to jawbone. Bone responds especially well to titanium and treats the metal as if it were part of your natural jaw bone. The result is an especially strong base for a replacement tooth, the second part of a dental implant. The replacement tooth is much like a crown, but it attaches to an implant instead of covering a fixed tooth. Because of their strength, two dental implants can support many restored teeth, so you don’t need an implant to substitute for every single lost tooth.
Kinds of Implant Treatments
A single dental implant may be used to restore one or more teeth, depending on your budget, goals and available jawbone. The following dental implant treatments are provided at Rock Creek Dental:
Single Tooth Restoration
With this procedure a single dental implant screw supports a single crown. A single tooth restoration is a standard method of dental implant dentistry and the best technique for repairing a lost tooth. Many teeth can be replaced using this technique. This procedure does the best job of replicating the roots, offering constant stimulation to your jawbone.
Implant Bridges
If a number of teeth are missing right next to each other, and cost or jawbone availability is a factor, two implants can be used to support a dental bridge, repairing many teeth simultaneously. Bridges normally require the adaptation of two existing teeth, which become the base of the bridge.
Implant Arch Restoration
For full-mouth reconstruction, the dental implant arch procedure restores all of the teeth in the upper and/or lower jaw. In the upper jaw, four implants are strategically installed to support a denture that is either permanently affixed or removable (a “snap-in” or “snap-on” denture). For the lower jaw, only two implants are required to substitute for the complete arch. Certainly, if more implants are installed, the denture is more secure. Our Auburn dentist, Dr. Matson, provides all of the options for each client, in accord with their specific circumstances.