Replace Missing Teeth: More Options Than Ever

Replacing missing teeth has never been easier thanks to the many oral prosthetics you can choose from nowadays. Dental implants are the most popular teeth replacement option, but you might be better off with other options like dentures and bridges.

This article will explore some of the popular ways people choose to replace their missing teeth.

Having a full set of teeth allows one to show off their smile and it also makes it easier to maintain good oral and overall health. Teeth help with speech and also serve other important functions like tearing, cutting and grinding down food.

Common solutions for missing teeth

Anyone who is missing some of their teeth should consider one of the options listed below:

1. Dental implants

Implants are a long-term way to address missing teeth. The process involves surgically inserting a post that is usually made of titanium into the patient's jawbone. This replaces the lost tooth's roots, preserving the patient's jawbone tissue. A crown is then fitted on the implant, typically six months after its installation. This is the amount of time it takes for the bone tissue around the implant to fuse with it. The process is called osseointegration and it embeds the implant in bone tissue just as is the case with a real tooth's roots.

Not all patients who go with implants have to wait six months before an artificial tooth is attached to it. Mini dental implants and same-day implants can be crowned on the same day the implant is inserted into the patient's jaw.

Implants come with many benefits that make them worth the long process. These benefits include:

No need for specialized care
They are a long-term solution
They preserve essential jawbone tissue
Replacing a missing tooth with an implant prevents teeth alignment problems that could arise as a result of the lost tooth

2. Dental bridge

A dental bridge is used to fill up the space created by one or multiple missing teeth next to each other. The device consists of two parts. Pontics — which are artificial teeth — and abutments that are attached to the two teeth closest to the gap formerly occupied by the missing tooth. These teeth are often crowned to provide improved stability.

Bridges restore the appearance and function of lost teeth, but they do not replace the lost teeth's roots. That means a person who goes with bridges is still susceptible to bone tissue loss.

3. Dentures

Dentures are quite popular with those who have lost most of their real teeth. There are also partial denture sets for those who have only lost a few teeth. These oral prosthetics are made up of artificial teeth and a framework that supports them.

They are held in place in the wearer's mouth by suction forces that are created when the device is worn. Dentures can be combined with implants to give patients more stable artificial teeth and to prevent bone tissue breakdown.