Dental implants are considered the standard of care to replace missing teeth. The implant is a prosthesis placed in the jaw bone and acts as an "artificial root" of a missing tooth. Once healed a crown is placed which creates a very natural looking tooth that can transform your smile. The whole implant process is fairly quick and painless and the healing afterwards usually goes without complications.

 

Dental implants from start to finish are around 9 months in length and usually 3-4 separate appointments. The first appointment consists of placing the implant into the jaw bone and you can expect to be at our office for about 1.5 hours. Once this is complete you will wait a few months so that the implant and bone can become "one" through osseointegration. The next step is to re expose the implant after healing, place an abutment and take impression to fit the crown. During the final step you will come into the office to have the crown placed and make sure everything fits properly. 

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Dental crowns are recommended to help maintain appearance, strength and integrity of decayed, chipped, fractured or heavily filled teeth. Crowns are a fixed prosthesis that can last for many years with proper oral hygiene. Many crowns today are tooth coloured which patients love because it matches the natural appearance of the adjacent teeth. Our office typically completes crowns in 2 separate appointments. The first appointment consists of preparing the tooth for the crown and taking impressions, and picking the proper shade to match the other teeth. This will be sent to the lab for fabrication. A temporary crown will be placed until your next appointment. The second appointment which is about 2 weeks later is much faster and the dentist will try in the crown to make sure it fits properly and the bite is correct. The crown is then cemented and you are ready to show off your new smile!

 

Dental bridges main function is to replace 1 or more missing teeth. Bridges can be an alternative for partial dentures when replaced more than 1 missing tooth. Like implants and crowns, bridges can take several appointments to complete. The first appointment will be for the preparation of the teeth adjacent to the missing space. Much like a crown appointment a proper shade will be chosen and the impressions will be sent to the lab for fabrication. A temporary bridge will be placed until about 2 weeks later when you return to the office to have the permanent bridge cemented. 

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If you have any questions regarding dental implants, crowns or bridges please contact us today and we would be happy to help!