Implants support the long-term health of you and your smile!
True to our name at Intentional Smiles, everything we do is with pure intent. Our owner, Dr. Taylor Barton, has carefully vetted all of our technologies, techniques, products, and materials. So, our patients in Edmond and the greater Oklahoma City area benefit from the best modern dentistry offers, including dental implants.
Sink your teeth into implants
There really is no time like the present to replace missing teeth with dental implants. Bone loss can arise when teeth are lost. A progressive process, bone loss (or “resorption”) only gets worse over time and without appropriate treatment.
Consider how teeth serve numerous purposes, including supporting facial structure. The alveolar bone that surrounds each tooth stays strong due to the stimulation it gets from the teeth. Hundreds of fleeting contacts occur throughout the day as we bite and grind down food. When teeth are lost, those contacts do not occur and the supporting bone deteriorates. After just one year without a tooth, 25% of the width of the bone supporting that tooth can be lost.
You may notice your face looks different, too. Bone loss results in a sunken appearance as the cheeks and lips don’t have as much support. Traditional dentures do not inhibit bone loss, and the lower third of the face can “collapse” and appear out of proportion with the rest of the face. Slipping dentures also represent a sign of bone loss, and an ill fit speeds up this destructive process. In addition, the loss of teeth can cause imbalances that adversely affect chewing function and speech.
Dental implants prevent, halt, and even reverse the effects of bone loss. They do so by either maintaining or re-establishing the contacts between the supportive bone and the forces generated by the teeth when chewing food. The implant itself replaces the root of a tooth. When precisely positioned in the jawbone, the implant heals and fuses to the bone as part of a process called “osseointegration.” Once the implant is connected to the bone and is a seamless part of the jaw, it can serve as the foundation to hold or “root” the replacement tooth in the mouth.
Implants may be used to:
- Support a single replacement tooth (or crown)
- Stabilize two or more replacement teeth (as bridges)
- Restore an entire arch (maxilla or mandible)
- Support an upper or lower denture, or both upper and lower dentures (as “overdentures”)
Due to how implants are placed, they may be positioned in such a way as to maximize available bone in the jaw. This feature minimizes the number of implants required to support dentures or restore oral health among patients who are missing many, if not all, of their teeth!
Schedule an appointment at Intentional Smiles to learn more about dental implants. Call (405) 348-2266 to reach our team in Edmond, OK.
Dental Implants
Dental implants are titanium roots, that are replaced with in the jawbone to resemble a tooth or group of teeth. A screw is inserted through the gums and into the jawbone. A porcelain crown is then attached to the screw to become the new tooth or teeth. They can be used to support dental prosthesis including crowns, dentures, and bridges. Today’s treatments are so natural looking, no one will know you had surgery. There’s approximately a 95% success rate for all implants. With modern advances in dentistry, some implants can be restored immediately with life like all porcelain crowns. For more details ask your dentist.