Can Anyone Get Dental Implants?

Tooth loss can be caused by injury, disease, or tooth decay. If you are missing one or more teeth, dental implants may be an option for you.

What are dental implants?

Dental implants are metal posts that resemble screws. The posts are inserted into the jawbone of the patient to replace the tooth roots of missing teeth. The implants can be used to support permanent individual tooth replacements or removable dentures.

Benefits of dental implants

Many patients prefer dental implants to traditional tooth replacement treatments because of the benefits:

• Can last a lifetime with proper care
• Do not need to be removed
• Do not require adjacent teeth to be altered
• Do not slip and interfere with speaking
• Look and feel more like natural teeth
• Make chewing easier
• More comfortable than dentures
• No need for adhesives
• Stimulate the jawbone and help avoid the bone loss that often occurs with traditional dentures
• Teeth are easier to access for hygiene purposes

Who can get dental implants?

Most adults who are healthy enough to have a tooth extraction or routine oral surgery performed can get dental implants. However, the patient's gums must be healthy and the patient needs to have enough bone mass in the jaw to support the implant. In some cases, patients who do not have enough bone mass may be able to have a bone augmentation procedure.

Additionally, patients must commit to maintaining an oral hygiene routine and having regular dental checkups. People who smoke, have had radiation therapy to the neck or head, or have chronic conditions, such as heart disease or diabetes, that are not well controlled must be evaluated before being approved for the procedure.

Dental implant procedure

First, the dentist creates a treatment plan. The dentist then places a small titanium post in the bone socket of the missing tooth. The patient must then wait for the jawbone to heal, which usually takes between six and 12 weeks. The jawbone grows around the implant, securely anchoring it in the jaw, as it heals.

When the jawbone has bonded to the implant, the dentist attaches a connector post, called an abutment. The abutment's function is to hold the replacement tooth in place. Alternatively, patients who are missing multiple teeth may opt to have attachments placed that can support a removable denture, instead of having multiple individual teeth attached to implants.

The dentist makes an impression of the teeth and constructs a model of the patient's bite. The replacement tooth or denture is manufactured based on this model. The color of the replacement tooth or teeth is matched to the patient's natural teeth. The dentist then attaches the replacement tooth, called a crown, or the denture to the abutment.