The Dental Implants Process Demystified

August 24, 2017

When we first mention dental implants as an option for patients with missing teeth, they often have no idea what to expect. The entire idea seems foreign to some patients and frightening to others. While the dental implant supported tooth replacement process does require a little more time than other tooth replacement options, the results last longer and look and feel more natural. If this sounds like something you may be interested in, please contact the La Plata Dental team to schedule your dental implant consultation.

Dental Implant Consultation

The first step in restoring your smile with versatile, effective dental implant supported tooth replacement prosthetics is a one-on-one consultation. We assess your smile using visual and manual examination as well as diagnostic x-rays. We also need to learn a little bit more about your past experience with medical or dental surgeries as well as any chronic health conditions that affect your ability to heal. All of this information will help us to determine whether or not implant-retained restoration is the best option for your unique case.

Tooth Loss & Extraction

Patients who choose to proceed with dental implant restoration have often already lost one or more teeth. This could mean a single avulsed (knocked out) tooth that occurred due to traumatic injury or more advanced tooth loss. For these patients, there’s no need for an extraction appointment. Instead, they go straight to their surgical implantation appointment. Following tooth extraction, patients may choose implant supported tooth replacement. In this case, they may be able to have the dental implant placed on the same day the tooth is removed, but some need to wait one or more weeks to allow the tissue to heal.

Surgical Implant Placement

To complete the initial phase of dental implant restoration, your Framingham Premier

Dentist in Framingham Offers Periodontics

When it comes to your dental health, you rely on the care from your dentist in Framingham to ensure that your smile stays healthy for a lifetime. However, as you age, your needs are going to change. It is not uncommon to develop issues that require specialized services, like periodontal disease or tooth loss. When this happens, you need a highly trained professional who has received advanced training in the area. Often, this requires you to be sent to a different location to get the care you need. However, by choosing an office that has a periodontist on site, you will receive the services that you need under one roof.

Benefit from a Periodontist

In addition to the general dentistry requirements, a periodontist has undergone extensive training to specialize in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of gum disease while also holding vast knowledge about the placement of dental implants. They are experts in oral inflammation due to three years of additional education for treating periodontal disease while also trained in cosmetic periodontal procedures and tooth replacement solutions.

Periodontal Disease

Although a general dentist can often treat the early stages of gum disease, as it progresses, you will need more advanced care to resolve the issues that arise, such as bone degeneration. A periodontist will find the underlying cause of the infection and create a proactive treatment plan to restore gum health while also repairing the damages that have occurred.

However, they do not just focus on the infection. They have knowledge regarding how other illnesses and diseases impact gum health, like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. This allows them to create a more effective treatment plan by understanding the complexity of the issue in its entirety.

Dental Implant Placement

In addition to gum disease, they are also the best choice