Understanding Dental Implant Treatment

Why are dental implants needed?

If you are missing teeth, dental implants are important for maintaining healthy teeth and bone structure in the jaw. Leaving missing teeth untreated can lead to several more serious issues, including:

• Further tooth loss: When you lose one tooth, the strength of the surrounding teeth are weakened, which can lead to further tooth loss. Dental implants help preserve natural teeth by providing the needed support and structure that prevents other teeth from becoming compromised.
• Bone degradation: As you chew food, your jaw bone is both stimulated and exercised, thus staying strong and healthy. When you are missing a tooth, the gap where the tooth was no longer provides the same stimulation, and as a result, can degrade in that area. This degradation of the jawbone can cause nearby teeth to weaken and become compromised.
• Tooth shifting: When there is a gap in your teeth, it will cause the neighboring teeth to shift in trying to fill in the gap. This will result in crooked teeth and tooth crowding, and make it more difficult to properly brush or floss. This in turn increases your risk of developing gum disease, not to mention having teeth that are visually unappealing.
• Bruxism: If your teeth shift, you may be more likely to experience tooth grinding due to misalignment. Grinding teeth can lead to a number of more serious issues, including headaches, cracked or chipped teeth, and even damage to the enamel.

Do dental implants last?

With proper care (which includes routine brushing and flossing), dental implants can last a lifetime and look and feel indistinguishable from your natural teeth. There is a rare chance that the implant will be rejected, although this is highly uncommon and typically can be corrected by a replacement implant.