Whether you’ve lived with traditional dentures for years and you’re tired of the loose fit, or you’re considering dentures for the first time, you need to know about dental implants.
Dental implants give you options for replacing your teeth. More importantly, you can use implants to hold dentures securely in your mouth.
Before you decide, connect with James M. Maragos, DDS, and the team at La Grange Dental Studio in La Grange, Illinois. We have years of experience helping patients replace missing teeth with dental implant restorations, even when they need to replace all their teeth.
We’re available to answer your questions about implants and dentures. Meanwhile, here are four reasons to consider dental implants.
Among the most common complaints people have about dentures are they’re uncomfortable and loosen too easily, making it hard to talk with confidence and nearly impossible to bite and chew some foods. Implants eliminate that problem.
A dental implant is a titanium rod that we place into your jawbone. Titanium is biocompatible, so your jawbone grows around and bonds with the rod. As a result, the implanted rod becomes just as strong and secure as your original tooth root.
After an implant is in place, we cement a dental crown to the implant. Today’s advanced crowns are just as strong as tooth enamel. With an implant to securely anchor the crown, you have a new restoration that functions like your natural tooth.
We can use implants for single crowns and replace all your teeth with individual crowns. While that’s a good option for some people, it’s not always the best choice. (Your jawbone may not support that many implants.)
A full mouth of dental implants also tends to be costly, but you have another option.
We can use implants to securely anchor dentures. It typically takes four implants to anchor upper dentures and at least two for lower dentures, but the total you need depends on the health of your jawbone.
After you choose implant-supported dentures, you have one more decision to make: Do you want your dentures to be removable or permanently fixed in place like natural teeth?
To give you fixed implant-supported dentures, we securely attach the dentures to the supporting implants. We can remove them if needed for dental problems; otherwise, they’re permanently anchored in your mouth.
You don’t need to worry about taking the dentures in and out, but you must use floss threaders, a water flosser, or interproximal brushes to clean between the dentures and gums.
If you choose removable implant-supported dentures, your new dentures are made to snap on and off the implants. The implants hold them securely so they don’t slip, and you have the confidence to eat what you want. Like traditional dentures, you take them out for cleaning.
How you replace missing teeth is up to your personal preferences. What’s important is you get the restorations you need to restore a full mouth of healthy teeth and regain a beautiful smile.
We can help you make the best choice by examining your teeth and jawbone and explaining your options.
Call La Grange Dental Studio today or connect online to request an appointment to learn about dental implants.