A dental Implant is a titanium screw which replaces the root of your tooth.
Implants vary in design, length and width depending on the volume of bone available. Implants are made from high grade biocompatible titanium, forming a metal screw which is then surgically inserted into the jawbone.
The biological process takes place, known as ‘osseointegration’ where the implant and bone fuse together. This process, which takes on average three months to complete, was discovered 60 years ago by an orthopaedic surgeon Professor Per Ingvar Branemark, who fathered the worldwide recognised implant system which we have used for the last 15 years – Nobel Biocare™.
Osseointegration allows the implant to act as an anchor and replicates the function of the natural root. After three months the dental implant is ready to be ‘loaded’ with a zircinium crown which we digitally scan, design and 3D print to replace your missing tooth or teeth. These can be either a fixed crown for a single tooth or a bridge attached using two or more implants for up to a whole set of missing teeth.
Find out more here https://www.nobelbiocare.com/en-uk
To see some recent examples please view here.
Types of Implant Solution:
Single Unit Implant Crown
Types of Implant Solution:
Implant Bridge
Options for Missing Teeth
An implant is made of titanium and is surgically placed into the bone, where it ‘fuses’ with the surrounding tissue. Once it has fully healed (3-6 months) a tooth can be screwed into the implant. You can replace single or multiple missing teeth in this way. Implants can last a lifetime and mean that the teeth either side of the gap are left untouched which makes it an excellent option. Your dentist will need to make a full assessment of the bone depth and quality, and may refer you for specialist imaging before deciding if an implant is possible.
A bridge has two parts, the retainer, which is fixed to your tooth and is attached to the pontic, which fills the gap where a tooth has been lost. The retainer(s), may be a crown (this is called a fixed bridge). In some cases the retainer is a metal wing (this is called an acid etch or Maryland bridge) which is cemented to the back of your tooth. A wing retainer has the advantage of requiring less tooth preparation than a crown, therefore preserves as much of your own tooth as possible. It has the disadvantage of being less strong and more prone to coming loose than a fixed bridge.
Full dentures (false teeth) are made of plastic and replace all of the teeth. Partial dentures replace one or more teeth and are held in by clasps around your own teeth. They can be made of plastic or cobalt chromium. Your dentist will take imprints of your mouth over a number of visits to send to the lab where the denture is constructed.
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