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Specialized Implantology Clinic
Dental implantation is a modern, reliable and durable way to restore one or more lost teeth.
- Make an appointment
- We will explain the best option for you
- You will make a decision about the installation of implants
What is a dental implant?
A dental implant is an artificial tooth root that is inserted to replace a lost tooth. It can be made of different materials; however, it is most often made of titanium or a titanium and zirconium alloy. A dental implant resembles a screw, which is surgically inserted into the jawbone tissue at the place of the lost tooth and an artificial tooth crown is attached to it.
What is the procedure of implant surgery?
The journey to a dental implant placement begins with a consultation with a dental implantologist. During the first visit, a dental examination is carried out, the health of both teeth and gums is checked, and an X-ray is taken to find out what state the jawbone is in. Then I draw up a treatment plan for the patient that shows the subsequent process and its costs. We discuss it together with the patient so that they can get answers to the questions they are still unclear about and to decide on starting the treatment.
According to the treatment plan, I can already place a dental implant or implants at the next visit.
Most often, healing takes a couple of months, and only after it, can the process of making an artificial tooth crown or crowns be started according to the treatment plan. To achieve the perfect aesthetic and functional results, a few crowns may be tried.
There are situations when it is possible to place an implant right after tooth extraction.
Why should a lost tooth be restored as soon as possible?
Although many people think that the loss of one or more teeth does not have harmful consequences and does not affect quality of life, one should know that if one or more teeth are lost, measures should be taken to restore them as soon as possible.
A delay in treatment inevitably brings unwanted changes to the body:
– The adjacent teeth will begin leaning towards the lost tooth. This will negatively affect the appearance of the smile, and gaps will form between the teeth. Teeth tilting jeopardises the state of the adjacent teeth. Exposed tooth roots significantly increase the risk of periodontal disease. The bite will change and the misaligned bite might lead to headaches.
– Without receiving the usual load, the jawbone will begin to disappear in place of the lost tooth. This might lead to changes in the shape of the face and premature ageing.
Why are dental implants better than dental bridges?
Replacement of teeth with a dental bridge method has several disadvantages. First, adjacent healthy teeth need to be shaved, which significantly reduces their durability and long-term prognosis. Secondly, the teeth under the bridge are more difficult to clean, remains of food accumulate there, causing the development of caries, which can lead to the loss of these teeth.
A dental implant is a free-standing unit that does not require support from adjacent teeth. It does not require any special care or specialised products.
TREATMENT OPTIONS
Tooth extraction and immediate implant placement
Following tooth extraction, a dental implant can be placed immediately and, if possible, a temporary crown can be fixed.
Such implant placement procedure is convenient (the patient does not have to stay a single day without a tooth), it is painless (implant placement surgery is less traumatic than tooth extraction), and does not require additional operations (there is only one surgical intervention).
Is a dental implant suitable for restoring just one tooth?
Dental implants can replace one or several missing teeth, as well as the entire row of teeth. To replace several teeth, bridge-like structures are used, which are attached to implants. While the entire row of teeth can be replaced by removable or fixed structures.
To restore an entire row of teeth with fixed structures, each tooth does not have to be replaced with its own implant. 4-6 implants are enough. The exact number of implants depends on the amount and quality of the patient’s bone tissue. When the entire row of teeth is replaced with a removable structure, the number of implants can be from 2 to 4.
What is bone augmentation and is it always necessary?
When one or more teeth are missing for a longer period of time, a deficiency of hard, i.e., bone tissue, or soft tissue (gum) can develop.
In these cases, the tissue needs to be restored. Nowadays it can be easily done. For this procedure, an artificial bone substitute is used, which is fixed with special membranes in the places where there is a deficiency. Or, in cases of soft tissue loss, an artificial gum substitute is used.
Each case is very individual. There are cases when bone or gum augmentation can be combined with implant surgery.
The artificial tissue augmentation procedure takes about… it is performed under anaesthesia. The healing process takes about…
To protect the natural bone tissue after tooth extraction, I often advise my patients to fill the root of the extracted tooth with biomaterial. This manipulation is neither painful nor unpleasant for the patient. After the bone has healed, we have a place ready for the implant.