30 Jul 2018
Teeth are important eating partners and you would like to take them along with yourself for your lunch. Without their company, you simply cannot enjoy a meal. Teeth alsohave great aesthetic value, and certainly are more impactful to your appearance and beauty than your dress or even that watch you wear. Missing teeth result in an aged appearance, and it is not confined to visible teeth. A back tooth may as well change alignment so as to shift mouth and result in a less flattering facial appearance, and in that clever way, the missing tooth makes its absence known. Bones, similar to muscles, begin atrophying when not used – yet another side effect of missing teeth. Jaw bones are stimulated while chewing, and even a single missing tooth over time results in the bone underneath to weaken.
Thanks to modern dentistry, missing teeth can be replaced, and it is a job well done at the Hassaan Dental Clinic!
Missing teeth can be replaced in a number of ways, and it is advisable that you know which method is the most to your advantage.
- Dental Implants
- Fixed Bridges
- Removable Partial Dentures
Dental Implants
Implants are the most popular option. They replace both the root and the crown of the tooth. The implant is an artificial tooth root that is anchored to the bone, made of Titanium or some other material accepted by the human body. After the implant is surgically installed, bone begins to grow around it, keeping it strongly in place and thus being highly effective. However, this requires time and the patient needs to wait. The crown is made of porcelain or ceramic and has the outward appearance of a tooth. Once the implant is strongly anchored, a process that may take up to several months in some cases, the crown is attached to the implant using dental cement.
Advantages
Permanent, with little need for replacement, once fixed.
Do not need to be replaced or adjusted, and thus cost-effective in the long run, despite being a more costly option initially.
Since an implant is anchored firmly in the bone, it prevents shrinkage of the jaw bone due to tooth loss.
Disadvantages
Not a suitable option for everyone. Being a surgical procedure, it will pose complications towards people with diabetes or leukemia.
May require Long healing time.
May cost more than other treatments.
Fixed Bridges
Bridges are replacement teeth that fill the space of one or more missing teeth. Bridges are made of metal or ceramics, or alloys, with the ceramic bridges being most natural looking. A bridge consists of a false tooth with hollow crowns on both sides, which are cemented to nearby teeth. To do so, however, the teeth neighbouring the missing tooth need to be reshaped so as to be covered by the new crowns which will support the “pontic”. The pontic is the replacement for the missing tooth. This procedure takes more than one visit to the dentist because it consists of multiple steps
- Taking an impression of teeth to custom-make the bridge
- Preparing the teeth around the gap for bridge placement
- Subsequent cementing of the bridge in place.
Advantages
Cost less than implants
Do not require removal for cleaning
Disadvantages
Affect the teeth next to the bridge
May require being replaced after a long time
Cleaning under the pontic may be difficult.
Removable Partial Dentures
A removable denture is worn during the day to replace an entire arch of missing teeth, i.e. all teeth on the upper or lower jaw. It consists of a plate that fits to the roof of the mouth, false teeth and gums that are fitted over the natural gums. Removable partial dentures may be used to cover a few, and not all, missing teeth in an arch.It may require metal clasps to remain fixed, which may be visible to a disadvantage.
Dentures do not prevent bone loss and with the passage of time, jaw line continues to change in shape and diminish. This may require their replacement, and though dentures may cost less than implants initially, they may end up costing more in the long run.
Advantages
Less expensive
Easy to repair
Disadvantages
Less stable than other choices
May be uncomfortable
May require replacement more frequently than other options