DENTAL
implants
Dental implants is the closest we can get to mimicking natural teeth and restoring your smile.
Dental implants can enable you to eat, speak and smile confidently.
Dental implants is a predictable long-term solution for those seeking a fixed option for replacing a single tooth, restoring short spaces or full mouth rehabilitation.
What are dental implants and what do they do?
A dental implant is, essentially, a very precisely engineered medical ‘screw’, which is carefully inserted inside the jaw bone. As the implants are made of bio-compatible materials, such as titanium and zirconia, natural human bone grows around the threads of the implant after placement, firmly securing it in place. This process is known as osseointegration.
Once the dental implant is integrated with the bone, the top of the tooth (tooth’s crown) can be connected to the implant.
One implant can hold one crown (replace one tooth). However, dental implants can also be used to support bridges for replacing multiple teeth. For example, two implants can be used to hold three teeth, and 4-6 implants can hold full-mouth bridges, replacing all missing teeth in one jaw.
How long will the implants last?
Provided implants are cleaned and maintained well, they can last for many years. Just like with natural teeth, there are factors that can shorten the life-span of a dental implant and the bone around it. The key risk factors are smoking, inadequate cleaning around the implants, grinding/clenching and some general health problems, which may affect the healthy functioning of bone.
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Statistically speaking, in healthy patients with good oral hygiene, out of a hundred implants placed, about 96 would be expected to survive for 5 years, whilst about 92 will survive for 10 or more years. Compared to other treatment options, this is a very good survival rate.
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Can implants help for those wearing dentures?
For those struggling with dentures, implants can be a life-changing solution. Although some people are able to wear their dentures successfully, some have problems with the dentures moving whilst eating or talking, even when using denture fixative pastes.
One way to secure the denture is to use two or more dental implants. The implants can provide little attachments to the denture. Once the denture is inserted, it clicks into place over these attachments and becomes fixed to dental implants. Such denture do not require denture adhesive pastes, improves ability to eat and increases confidence, whist can be easily removed for cleaning and sleeping.
Is implant placement painful?
Dental implant placement is a delicate and gentle surgery. Implants are usually placed under local anaesthesia alone or in combination with conscious sedation.
Most patients find the implant surgery comfortable and painless and full recovery is expected within 7-14 days.
Like with most surgical procedures, it is normal to experience mild or moderate discomfort, swelling or, occasionally, bruising after the implant surgery. Some pain relief may be required, especially during the first few days after implant placement.
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What does the treatment involve?
The implant placement surgery is actually not the longest part of implant treatment. In fact, the treatment planning is the cornerstone of implant treatment and usually takes much longer than the placement of the implant itself.
During the treatment planning and assessment stage, we will carry out a full assessment of your mouth and general health, obtain a 3-dimensional X-ray of your jaw (CBCT scan) and a digital scan of your teeth and mouth.
By combining the obtained X-ray images and the digital scans of your teeth, we can create a “digital replica” of your mouth. This digital replica allows us to design the shape of the teeth we are replacing, and to establish, assess the quality of your bone and to determine the best position for the implants.
This process is carried out outside of people’s mouth using state-of-the-art 3D scanning, 3D printing and dental CAD-CAM technologies. Such precision planning helps us to achieve optimal results in terms of function and aesthetics at the end of the treatment.
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