Dental Implants when more than one is Tooth Missing


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If you are missing a few teeth, your dentist may refer to your mouth as partially edentulous. This could be from injury or an accident, or it could be gradual tooth loss as a result of disease or decay. Your few missing teeth could be in one cluster, causing a large gap, or they could be dotted around your mouth. If you fall into any of these categories dental implants can help you, and may work out the best option. Unfortunately, if you are missing more than just a few teeth but you are not yet fully edentulous (without any teeth) you are more likely to require preliminary bone grafting or sinus lifting, and the procedure will cost more because of the amount of labour and materials involved. Rather than having multiple single tooth implants (costly and unnecessary) it is more likely your dentist will create a crown or a bridge, which can mean that multiple false teeth are attached to just one implant. If you are missing lots of teeth you also have the option of a partial denture or a crown or bridge that is cemented in place, although there are negatives associated with attaching the bridge using clips or cement because of the damage caused and pressure put on the surrounding healthy teeth. There is also still the risk of bone loss with a standard crown and bridge attachment. Using a dental implant can actually stimulate the bone tissue cells and prevent bone loss. The implant crown and bridge process, often used to replace multiple teeth, also requires the usual consultation with your dentist and an x-ray to determine the positioning of the implant. A wax mould is also taken of the current tooth positioning to understand how the implants will sit in the mouth. The implant is placed and osseointegration occurs.  Once the implants have healed in their correct position your dentist can make a plaster cast (from an impression taken of your mouth in wax, clay or dental putty) and send this off to a dental laboratory where your false teeth are created. A final visit will be necessary to fit the bridge, which spans across the gaps in your mouth giving you a full smile.

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