A dental implant is a three-part restoration designed to comprehensively replace a lost or extracted tooth. It consists of a dental implant post that’s implanted into the jawbone, an abutment, and a lifelike crown (or appropriate restoration) supported by them. The dental implant post is made from biocompatible titanium, and when it’s placed within your jawbone, the bone structure heals to the post as though it were a natural part of your body. When the process is complete, the abutment is attached the implant post and used to support the custom-designed, highly lifelike dental crown.
The difference between a dental implant crown a more conventional dental bridge, which is the traditional solution for tooth loss, is the biocompatible post that acts as a prosthetic root for your restoration. For example, a traditional dental bridge also consists of a highly lifelike replacement tooth, but utilizes one or two dental crowns attached to nearby teeth to support it. By contrast, a dental implant gives your replacement tooth a replacement root to rest on, helping you avoid having to alter your remaining healthy, natural tooth structure as part of your smile restoration.
Avoiding the need to modify your healthy tooth structure is an important benefit to replacing a lost tooth with a dental implant and crown. However, replacing your lost tooth root is also vital to preserving your long-term oral health – particularly, the foundation of your smile. Healthy teeth roots are the source of stimulation that keeps your jawbone structure healthy. Losing a tooth root means a drop in this stimulation, and replacing it with a dental implant is the only way to reestablish it.
If you’ve lost a tooth, then replacing it with an implant-supported dental crown can benefit your smile in more ways than you might expect. To learn more, schedule an appointment by calling Gentle Smiles in Dallas, TX, today at 972-329-7645 (972-329-SMILE).
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