Dental Implant Types

Dental implants are long-term tooth replacements that are performed on adults of all ages, even those with gum or bone loss in the mouth. The implants are used to replace missing or damaged teeth while creating a natural looking mouth. Having implants will improve confidence, as there is no longer a reason to worry that people are looking at your teeth.

Significance

• Dental implants are an artificial replacement of teeth where the teeth are attached directly to the jaw area. Once attached, the teeth cannot be removed. The new teeth appear and are treated as natural teeth. A person will get implants due to tooth decay, gum disease, injury to the mouth, or excessive wearing of the teeth.

Root Form Implants

• A root form tooth implant creates a root and structure that is similar to the natural root and tooth. This type of implant can be done on a bone structure that is wide enough to support the root anchor. The implant is imbedded into the jaw bone and left for several months to heal. Once the jaw bone heals around the implant, a tooth extension is added to complete the process. This is the most common type of dental implant.

Plate Form Implants

• A plate form implant uses a plate attached horizontally to the jaw instead of the traditional root implant. This type of implant is used with a jaw that is narrow and cannot support the root form implant. After the implant is attached to the jaw, there is a healing period where the bone heals around the new implant. Teeth extensions are then added to the implant to complete the process. In some cases the plate form implant provides an immediate tooth restoration where the tooth extension is added at the same time as the plate.

Subperiosteal Implants

• The subperiosteal implant is used in cases where the jaw has degenerated and there is not enough bone structure available for a root or plate form implant. This type of implant creates a custom made jaw structure that sits on top of the remaining jaw bone, under the gum line. A surgical procedure is required to implant the structure, with the teeth extensions added at the same time.

Compared to Dentures

• Dental implants are stronger than dentures and look as though they are natural teeth. Root and plate form implants are osseointegrated where the bone heals around the implant to form a strong anchor. This process takes three to six months, but without osseointegration the implant will not hold. Dental implants give a person more freedom as the care of the new teeth is similar to that of natural teeth. There is no soaking or scrubbing of dentures, which need to be removed during cleaning. Implants do not slip while talking or eating and there is no fear of getting food lodged underneath, which can be uncomfortable with dentures.