It seems like every time we come into our office, we notice more and more happy dental implant patients. They can’t help but show off the beautiful new smiles that dental implants have accomplished for them. This has naturally caused our current and prospective patients suffering from missing teeth to take notice. They’ve begun asking us more and more questions about the dental implant process. To answer these questions, Dr. Craig S. Donn is blogging today from his Cherry Hill and Camden County, NJ office to give a general overview of the dental implant process and what each step of it entails.
Restore Your Smile with a Process that Works
The dental implant process is a straightforward method for restoring missing teeth. In fact, the process itself can be broken down into four easy steps, which include:
Consultation
Every journey to a restored smile with dental implants begins with a consultation with Dr. Donn. During your consultation, the doctor will perform a thorough examination to determine if dental implants will make a good treatment for your needs. Dr. Donn may also recommend a supplementary procedure, such as bone grafting or soft tissue augmentation, if you lack the needed foundation to support implants.
Procedure
During your procedure, Dr. Donn will make a small incision on your gums, exposing your jawbone. The implant fixture will then be placed in the empty spot left by your missing tooth, and the area will then be stitched up so it can heal. The abutment and a temporary replacement tooth may also be attached at this point, though it is not unusual to wait until after the recovery period before attaching anything to the implant fixture.
Recovery
The recovery period is the most important part of the dental implant process as this is when osseointegration occurs. Osseointegration is the process of your implant fixture being accepted by your jawbone and gums as a natural part of your anatomy. This is possible because dental implants are made from titanium, which the body doesn’t recognize as a foreign substance. Each implant fixture is also covered in small holes and ridges, which your jawbone and gums will thread themselves through as they heal, pulling the implant fixture permanently into place.
Restoration
Once the recovery period is complete, you will return to our office to have your replacement teeth attached. The abutment will also be connected at this point if it wasn’t directly after the process. Our replacement teeth are custom made for each patient based on impressions we take of their natural teeth. This means that once your replacement teeth are in place, no one will be able to tell the difference between your artificial and natural teeth.
Call and Schedule a Consultation with Dr. Craig S. Donn
While it is true that the dental implant process can take more time to complete than other restoration treatments, the results more than make up for this. Dental implants are the only treatment for missing teeth that provide beautiful replacement teeth that work and feel just like natural teeth. If you would like to find out whether or not you might be a good candidate for treatment with dental implants, we encourage you to contact us and schedule a no-obligation consultation with Dr. Craig S. Donn today.