New Dental Implant Procedures

An orthopedic surgeon and Swedish scientist Dr. P.I. Branemark, discovered dental implants which has fast become the leader in tooth replacement technology. Dental implants are an excellent alterative to dentures and partial and/or full bridges which can be loose and wobbly in the mouth and/or ill fitting. Dental implants are made of titanium rods that are approximately a centimeter in length. The implants are positioned inside a patient’s jawbone and their function is the same as the roots of a person’s teeth. Dental implants are defined as “small dental appliances that are inserted into the upper and lower jaws and help to restore the mouth that has little or no non-restorable teeth.” Dental implants can serve to both replace lost teeth as well as prevent the loss of bone. Implants can have many different textures including coated, hollow, smooth, perforated, threaded, or solid. Often dental implants are coated with a material known as hydroxyapatite which is very similar to a person’s natural bone.

The new procedures involved in dental implants make them tremendously superior to dentures. Dentures can be loose in the mouth or ill fitting and often don’t look as esthetically correct as do dental implants. As well dentures often need to be replaced whereas dental implants can last the length of the patient’s life span. Dental implants provide a great deal of support for bridges, crowns, and dentures and also cut down on how much they move around in the mouth. They also improve the stability and reliability of fixed bridges and removable dentures. Dental implants feel and look like real teeth to a much greater extent than dentures do and they make chewing a much simpler experience. Finally dental implants allow a patient to look better as well as younger and go a long way in encouraging a boost in self-confidence, as speech patterns are much better than they are with traditional dentures or bridges.

A break-through in dental implant technology is a new procedure known as single day implants (or denture stabilization). As the name suggests, this procedure “stabilizes” the lower denture or dental prosthetic that is already in place by fastening it into place by way of “mini dental implants” or MDIs. This procedure is an excellent option for those who require implants do not have enough damage in their mouths to need to go all the way with other forms of full blown implants. These mini implants can be put in place in a matter of hours and don’t require a multitude of dental visits over a long duration of time. Another big plus of them is that they are less expensive than other forms of more conventional dental implants.

Mini implants are approximately 1.8 millimeters in width and surgery is considerably shorter than it is for other forms of implants. The patient is first anesthetized and then a special implants drill is used to position the implants in the bone. If the patient’s case is a standard one then six implants are required for the denture stabilization surgery. A tiny finger driver that acts as a screwdriver holds each one of the individual mini implants in place and also acts as the method by which the insertion of the implants can be completed. The implant is tightened by way of a winged wrench and then a ratchet wrench is used to make sure the implant is positioned exactly as it should be and to make sure the mini implant has an accurate and comfortable fit in the patient’s mouth.