It’s understandable to feel overwhelmed and shocked over tooth loss. Missing one or more teeth can be one of the worst experiences an individual can have. It’s important to take good care of your teeth and preserve your smile in order to look attractive in public. Missing teeth can destroy your beautiful appearance and reduce your self-confidence. That’s why our professionals at Sawmill Valley Dental always recommend patients replace missing teeth as soon as possible to prevent possible complications. Fortunately, there are many different options available to replace one or more missing teeth. Dental implants, dentures, and dental bridges are three popular tooth replacement options with unique benefits. So many factors affect your decision, making you confused if you don’t have enough information about each option. Therefore, it’s highly recommended to consult a professional cosmetic dentist, as they can examine your oral health and see which treatment matches your needs. Here’s everything you need to know about dental implants vs. dentures to help you break things down.
What Are Dental Implants?
Teeth roots are replaced with dental implants by inserting titanium posts into the jawbone. They are a permanent answer to missing teeth and have the same function as natural teeth. Your implant dentist examines your condition to see whether you are an eligible candidate to start the treatment.
How Do Dental Implants Work?
The process of getting a dental implant requires oral surgery to place a titanium post into the bone. After the dental surgery, you have to let your mouth recover, and your wounds heal in order to start the next step. The implant should osseointegrate with your natural jawbone, and it may take several months. Then, an abutment is placed on the top of the dental implant and get connected to a porcelain crown or implant-supported bridge.
What Are Dentures?
Simply, dentures are removable appliances to replace one or more missing teeth. You have partial or full dentures as your two available options to choose from based on your needs and conditions. It’s important to consult your dentist carefully and examine each option to make the best decision. Occasionally, your dentist may recommend tooth removal for all your remaining teeth to get full dentures. On the other hand, you can replace one or a few missing teeth with the help of partial dentures.
What Else to Consider?
Here are some other factors to determine when deciding between dental implants or dentures:
Long-term Oral Health: You don’t want to experience further dental emergencies and problems after getting dentures or implants. The fact is dental implants preserve bone and prevent gum tissue from shrinking, but dentures don’t have this effect.
Oral Hygiene: The process of cleaning dentures is much more complicated than dental implants. Remember, these two tooth replacement options can’t hey affected by professional teeth whitening, so you have to maintain excellent oral hygiene to keep them white and shiny.
If you still don’t know which option is the best for you, don’t waste time and visit our dentists for a personal consultation.
