When you have tooth loss, we can offer a durable and long-lasting solution with implant dentistry. Dental implants can address a single missing tooth, or support an entire set of dentures. In today’s blog, your Livonia, MI, dentist explains how we plan and implement the placement of your new smile!
Examining Your Smile
To get started, we will carefully examine your smile so we can understand the causes of your tooth loss and the severity, enabling us to plan implant placement with detail and precision. We also gather a digital impression of your smile, one more accurate than physical models. With the Trios intraoral scanner, we will create digital scans of your smile from multiple angles, quickly and comfortably, without the need for bitewings or long development periods. The images enable us to create a detailed impression of your entire smile, so we can plan the placement of your new dental implants. These measurements allow us to design and create custom restorations and prosthetics too, such as crowns and even dentures.
Inserting Your New Roots
We will guide the dental implant posts, made from biocompatible titanium, into the jaw. These small screw-like posts will bond with the jaw through a process known as osseointegration, so they can act as new roots and last for years to come, decades in many cases. We always choose the angle and position to not only support new teeth, but also stimulate the growth of jawbone structure so you don’t lose mass and density as you often would following tooth loss. This preserves your smile and your youthful facial features in the process.
Completing Your Tooth
Once the placement area has healed, or in some cases in the same visit, we will connect abutments to the posts, which provides structure that extends above the gum line. For an individual missing tooth, we then attach a custom crown to the abutment, so you have a full tooth, a durable chewing surface, and of course, a lifelike appearance that blends with your smile. For more severe cases, we could use several posts to support a bridge or even a set of full dentures, so you have a fixed prosthetic that never slips and that lasts far longer than traditional bridges and dentures.
Now is a great time to see our team for a consultation and to start treatment, as you can use your 2023 dental benefits before they expire at the end of the month, and put your last health savings account funds to use before they’re gone. If you have any questions about implant placement, then contact our team today.
Schedule a Consultation Today!
You’re never too late to obtain a full and beautiful smile with implant dentistry. To schedule a consultation for your dental implant placement, call Dr. Stewart in Michigan in Livonia, MI, at 734-425-4400.