If you have missing teeth, especially in the visible parts of your mouth, you may want to hide your smile. Thus, you should visit a dentist in Downtown Chicago to know if you can benefit from dental implants. To be a good candidate, you must have sufficient jawbone density, have a strong immune system, and don’t use tobacco products. Read on to learn more about dental implants:
What to Expect from the Implant Process
Dental implants are prosthetic teeth roots often made of titanium meant to support dental crowns. After you lost a tooth, your jawbone in the area is reabsorbed by your body. Dental implants provide the natural stimulation that the roots of your teeth give, stopping bone reabsorption and preserving the jawbone’s natural structure.
If you do not have enough jawbone density, you can undergo bone grafting meant to replace the missing bone with material from your body. Dental bone grafts provide density and volume to the jaw area where you lost a bone. During the implant procedure, the titanium screw is surgically placed in your jaw. Often, it takes several months for your implant to fuse with the jawbone and fully heal. Your dentist may ask you to come in for follow-up appointments to make sure the implant site is healing smoothly. After you have fully healed, your dentist will attach a permanent dental restoration to the post.
Why Get Dental Implants
Dental implants do not slip as they are fused to the jawbone to ensure permanent stability. Thus, you can eat, smile, and talk with confidence following the implant procedure. Also, getting implants lets you avoid facial collapse, which can happen as you age and lose teeth. A facial collapse will alter your facial shape and make you look older than your age.
Moreover, dental implants impact not just your smile but also your oral health. Once you lose a tooth, you can lose more teeth in the long run. Also, you are at risk of jawbone deterioration. Further tooth loss is possible as the teeth that surround the missing tooth will have less support and will shift toward the gap. Dental implants keep nearby teeth in place, preventing further tooth loss.
A beautiful, healthy smile conveys confidence and positivity, which keep you young-looking. Because dental implants function and look like your natural teeth, you don’t have to avoid some foods or take time to learn how to speak with them.
