Whatever method is employed the results sought are always pretty much the same. The dentures in question need to look natural, feel comfortable and enable the patient to eat, drink and speak without any difficulty. Combining all of these, however, can be more difficult in some cases than others.
If a patient is in perfect health when it comes to the state of their jawbone then securing dentures is a much simple task. A strong, healthy jawbone of a decent size will be able to hold titanium implant pins in various positions, and these pins can then act as the anchors for implants, crowns or full sets of dentures. Sometimes, however, the jawbone of a patient will be somewhat less than strong and healthy. If a patient has worn dentures for a period of some years, for example, then every day wear and tear may have worn away some of the body of the jawbone.
The absence of teeth can, in itself, lead to the bone in the jaw becoming degraded. In some cases, there may be enough of the bone left for the patient to recommend the use of fin implants or blade implants. Both made of titanium, these implants perform the same job as standard pins whilst requiring much less bone to hold them in place. Another approach may be for the dental technician in question to perform bone grafts to build up the density of the bone. Many times, a jawbone which looks perfectly healthy may, when x-rayed and scanned, turn out to be highly porous and therefor in no way capable of holding a pin, fin or blade securely.
If the jawbone of a patient has degraded to this degree, then a dentist working at the cutting edge of modern techniques may well be able to offer the patient subperiosteal implants. Implants of this kind take the form of a lightweight titanium framework which is custom made for the individual patient. Eventually, the frame will replace the bone that is missing and play the part of an anchor to hold dentures firmly in place. In order to construct the frame to be a perfect fit the dentist will take casts of the jaw, as well as utilising more advanced technologies such as x-rays and 3D cat scans. This information will then be put together to craft a Subperiosteal implant which will be a perfect fit for the individual patient.
The gum will be cut open by the dentist and the frame attached to the bone that is remaining. The gum will then be stitched back into place over the frame, with posts emerging from the gum to be used as an anchor once the healing process has been completed. This healing process will take at least three months, during which time the remaining bone will attach itself to the titanium implant, holding it in place permanently.
An implant of this kind can be designed to cover a small area of the jaw or, in the case of all the teeth being missing, the entire jaw. Once it has been attached to the jawbone it will provide a permanent anchor which makes dentures feel as strong and comfortable as natural teeth. If you enquire about teeth implants with Perfect smile dental we’ll examine your jaw, taking x-rays if need be, to ascertain which type of implant would be best for you. Our technicians work at the cutting edge of dental technology and our dental implants prices mean that the latest treatments are more accessible than ever.
A diligent dental technician will always do their best to ensure that a patient gets to keep all their own teeth, maintained in the best and most attractive condition possible. Sometimes, however, this simply isn’t possible, but the latest technology and expert care can be combined to ensure that the alternatives, such as dentures, are comfortable, hard wearing and natural looking.