Tooth loss affects millions of Americans. If you have one or more missing teeth, you may have noticed negative impacts on your quality of life. But your oral health may continue to decline if you do not seek tooth replacement treatment from a dentist.
The most comprehensive restorative solution for tooth loss is implant dentistry. These dental fixtures provide permanent prosthetic teeth with a variety of types that can suit your unique dental needs. Read on to learn about three kinds of dental implants your dentist might recommend to replace your missing teeth.
Which Dental Implant Will Best Restore My Smile?
Single Dental Implant
If you want to replace one missing tooth, your dentist might give you a single dental implant. You may receive more than one of this type of implant if you want to restore another tooth elsewhere in the mouth.
This dental fixture features a titanium post anchor that a dentist surgically places into the jaw. It fuses with the bone there to provide optimal support. Once this heals after a few months, the dentist will secure a crown as a prosthetic tooth atop an abutment attached to this anchor at the gumline.
You can feel confident in the way that your smile appears once again when you fill gaps in your smile after tooth loss. The custom prosthetics that come with dental implants will ensure a gorgeous and natural-looking finish.
Implant-Supported Dental Bridge
Patients with three or more missing teeth in a row may benefit from an implant-supported dental bridge. This type of implant uses two anchors: one for each end of the bridge prosthetic.
Dental implants offer long-lasting treatment for missing teeth, remaining in the smile for twenty or more years with proper care. Patients can chew, bite, and perform oral functions as normal again. They will not have to worry about their devices slipping out of place at inopportune moments either.
All-on-Four Dental Implant
An All-on-Four dental implant will replace an entire arch of teeth for a patient. It can fit on the top or bottom arch, though some patients can receive it on both if needed. The device features four anchors, hence its name, which will support the full denture of prosthetic teeth.
Implant dentistry offers crucial preventative dental care as well as oral restoration. After tooth loss, the jawbone can deteriorate without stimulation from a tooth root.
The anchor of an implant replaces the missing tooth root, providing stimulation once more. This keeps the jaw, dental, and facial structure healthy and stable. It also encourages bone that may have already been lost to regenerate.
Removable treatments like dentures replace teeth only above the gumline. So they cannot offer this oral health benefit. Schedule a consult with your dentist to learn if you qualify for implant dentistry solutions. They can help you decide which type of implant will best restore your smile in the wake of tooth loss.