When you lose one or more teeth, you lose a lot–smile aesthetics, the ability to eat and chew normally, and even jaw bone and gum tissue. Given all those oral health issues, it’s just smart to replace those missing teeth. Your dentist in Deer Park, Dr. Reeves, Peck or Tregre, offers tooth replacement options such as traditional partial dentures and inventive dental implants to bring a gapped smile back as close to what Nature intended as possible. Read the details about partial dentures and dental implants so you’re fully informed.
The Partial Denture
Traditionally, a partial denture has replaced one or more missing teeth. Made up of natural-looking acrylic teeth and gums mounted on a light metal frame, the removable partial denture fills in the space left by tooth loss in much the same way a puzzle piece fills in the gaps in a jigsaw.
How is a partial denture held in place? The metal frame includes small, claw-like clasps which anchor the prosthetic to adjoining natural teeth. These teeth must be surface-prepared so the clasps fit snugly and firmly. In other words, your dentist removes a small amount of enamel from the teeth adjoining the partial.
Unfortunately, this is one of the disadvantages of this prosthetic appliance; as time goes on, the friction of taking the denture in and out of the mouth wears on the enamel, making it susceptible to tooth decay. Additionally, conventional partial dentures have a lifespan of only about ten years, even with the best of oral hygiene at home and at the dental office.
The Dental Implant
The dental implant is today’s most popular tooth replacement option, and for good reason: it’s the most effective, durable and natural-looking artificial tooth available. The team at Deer Park Family Dentistry evaluates teens and adults for dental implant placement using oral examination, digital X-rays and other kinds of modern imaging techniques.
To accept the titanium implant device, metal extension post, and lifelike porcelain crown, the patient must be in good oral and overall health. If he or she is healthy, the implant device bonds right to the jaw bone through a process called osseointegration. Osseointegration actually preserves jaw bone integrity, a feature not found in traditional tooth replacement options.
Fortunately, dental implants may be placed singly or in multiples, and your dentist may recommend them to anchor partial or even full dentures. The result is a smile that functions just like the real thing, and it looks and feels incredibly natural, too. Another benefit of dental implants is that they last for decades. The patient simply cares for these prosthetic teeth as he or she would their natural teeth by:
- Flossing daily and brushing twice a day to keep ahead of harmful plaque
- Stopping smoking to avoid the toxins that degrade implant sites (gums and bone)
- Drinking plenty of water daily
- Eating a diet high in fibrous fruits and vegetables and low in processed sugars and carbohydrates
Does Your Smile Need Restoration?
You deserve the best in tooth replacement, and Deer Park Family Dentistry offers it. Please contact the office team today to arrange a restorative dentistry consultation with one of our highly skilled dentists. He or she will recommend the option that will serve your smile best.