DENTAL IMPLANTS SOLUTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH LOW BONE DENSITY
The Bristol Dental Practice provides advanced dental implants solutions, including procedures for patients who have low bone density in their jaw. Contrary to what your own dentist may have told you, low bone density is no longer necessarily a barrier to treatment with dental implants. If you are worried that you have experienced a significant amount of bone loss and cannot have implant treatment, you should come for a consultation with Dr Jonathan Cochrane at our Bristol dental practice.
Loss of bone density is one of the lesser-known side effects of tooth loss. It happens a lot in people who wear traditional dentures, because the dentures only replace the crowns of missing teeth, whilst doing nothing to address the issue of missing tooth roots.
Dental implants are bionic tooth roots. They are made from titanium, which encourages bone growth, and are placed in direct contact with your jaw bone under either local anaesthetic or conscious sedation at our Bristol dental clinic. Permanent new teeth – dentures, a bridge, or crowns – are then attached on top.
For those who have already experienced bone loss, we offer bone grafting procedures at our Bristol clinic. This involves rebuilding the density of your jaw bone prior to the placement of dental implants.
At our Bristol dental clinic, we use calcium-based organic material to rebuild the jaw bone density, which we find is highly effective and requires no additional surgery to harvest donor bone from elsewhere in the patient’s body, helping to reduce recovery times.
We also offer sinus lift procedures at our Bristol clinic, which involves packing the sinus cavity with bone graft material so that dental implants can be placed in the upper jaw.
This will add some months to your overall treatment time, but because it maximises the chances of successful placement of dental implants, it is worth the wait.
Bone loss isn’t just bad news for the teeth, it can in fact alter the whole structure of the face, causing a collapsed or sagging look that makes you look old before your time. Dental implants successfully prevent all these problems.
DENTAL IMPLANTS: AN INTRODUCTION TO PERMANENT TOOTH REPLACEMENT
Dental implants are the only permanent way in which a dentist can replace your missing teeth. At our Bristol implantology centre we offer both simple and advanced implant solutions, designed to restore your smile and all the function of a jaw full of healthy teeth. We can replace anything from one to all your teeth with dental implants at our Bristol clinic.
Choosing this permanent tooth replacement solution will also help to prevent resorption of the jaw bone. This is a commonly seen side-effect in patients with multiple missing tooth, and adds a layer of complexity to the placement of dental implants – although, unlike some dentists still believe, it does not preclude you from having treatment.
Dr Jonathan Cochrane, implant surgeon at our Bristol dental practice, can provide implant solutions for people who have lost some of their jaw bone density. Of course, as any dentist will tell you, we believe that any missing teeth should be replaced as soon as possible after tooth loss, to minimise the chances of bone loss happening. However, if your dentist has told you that you are not suitable for dental implants for this reason, we invite you to join us for a consultation with our implant dentist Dr Jonathan Cochrane for a second opinion.
Dental implants are not replacement teeth, but replacement tooth roots. Your dentist will then attach a single crown, an implant-retained bridge, or a denture to the abutments on top of your dental implants. Crowns and bridges are designed to stay permanently in your mouth, and while you can still remove your dentures to clean them, they will not become loose nor fall out unbidden.
Some patients requiring full arch (jaw) restorations may be suitable for a procedure called Same Day Teeth. This involves coming into our Bristol dental practice in the morning with missing or failing teeth, and leaving the same day with dental implants in situ and functional new teeth in denture form attached.
Not everybody is suitable for Same Day Teeth, but at our Bristol dental practice we won’t leave you toothless; a temporary bridge will be attached during healing.
USING DENTAL IMPLANTS TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR THE BETTER
Dental implants can bring significant benefits to your dental and general health. The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol offers implant solutions to all patients who need them – whether you have lost one tooth, all your teeth, or anything in between. Thanks to the skill of Dr Jonathan Cochrane, our implant dentist, we can even successfully treat cases where bone loss has already started – for example, in patients who have worn unsecured dentures for several years.
Dental implants: the advantages
There are numerous advantages to be gained from choosing dental implants to replace your missing teeth. To start with, they are the only permanent way your dentist can restore teeth to your jaw. These teeth will be unrivalled in terms of both natural appearance and function.
Because dental implants are bionic tooth roots, made from titanium, they help to prevent shrinkage of the jaw bone, which is a common side-effect in cases of multiple tooth loss. They are permanently implanted in your jaw bone, meaning that your new teeth will be held securely in place.
Whilst regular dentures often become loose, and standard dental bridges often need replacing, with proper care and regular visits to our Bristol dental practice for maintenance appointments, your dental implants will last you many years – often even a lifetime.
Gone will be any concerns about having to stick to soft foods, because you can eat what you choose. This is vital to maintaining good nutrition, which is important for every part of your body. You will also be able to speak clearly and smile with confidence.
Bristol dental implants
When you come to our Bristol practice for a dental implants consultation, your dentist will perform a detailed examination, including using CT scans to aid with treatment planning and assess your bone density.
For those who have low bone density, we can carry out bone grafting treatments at our Bristol clinic prior to placing your dental implants.
It is sometimes possible to attach new teeth at the same time as placing your implants, whilst in other cases a healing period is needed. Your dentist may fit temporary teeth during healing.
DENTAL IMPLANTS: A LIFE-CHANGING SOLUTION TO TOOTH LOSS
Dental implants won’t just improve your smile; they can change your life for the better. The Bristol Dental Practice offers a full spectrum of implant treatments, from simple single crown placements to a complex full-mouth restoration.
All implant work at our Bristol dental practice is carried out by Dr Jonathan Cochrane, a renowned implant dentist, who can carry out additional bone graft and sinus lift procedures if required, to rebuild your jaw bone density to adequate levels to support dental implants.
What can be gained from dental implants?
By using dental implants to replace any missing teeth you may have, you will gain so much more than a beautiful smile. Of course, at our Bristol dental practice we will ensure that your new teeth will look both beautiful and natural – but we will make sure they function just like natural teeth, too.
Because dental implants replace the roots of lost teeth (indeed, they are the only way to do so) and because they are made from titanium, which supports bone growth, they help to stop bone loss. This is a very common side-effect of missing teeth, and can lead to many of the common problems experienced by traditional denture wearers – loose, unwieldy and uncomfortable teeth that can cause big issues with your speech and your self-confidence, as well as affecting your ability to eat a healthy diet.
Unlike with traditional bridgework, implant-retained teeth don’t require support from your remaining teeth. Your dentist will precisely plan the placement of your implants so that they can fully-support your new teeth, and withstand all the forces generated by biting and chewing.
By choosing dental implants you can soon be enjoying the full functionality of a jaw full of healthy teeth. That means you can eat all your favourite foods again, can speak clearly and smile confidently.
We can place dental implants under either local anaesthetic or conscious sedation here at our Bristol dental practice. Sometimes, your dentist will be able to attach new teeth immediately, whilst in other cases a healing period will be required. This is usually a few short months, giving your implants time to mesh with your bone.
THE LIFE BENEFITS OF USING DENTAL IMPLANTS TO REPLACE YOUR MISSING TEETH
By choosing dental implants to replace your missing teeth, there are several life benefits to be gained. The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol offers many implant options, and our skilled implant dentist will work closely to find the perfect solution to your tooth loss.
Problems caused by missing teeth
One way or another, missing teeth should always be replaced. To do otherwise doesn’t just risk your dental health, it can have serious implications for your general health and wellbeing, too.
Just one missing tooth puts immediate strain on your remaining teeth, which may also move into the gap and get twisted, crooked, and misaligned in the process. This can make them much harder to keep clean and can increase your chances of dental decay and gum disease.
When several teeth are missing, your speech can be affected and your diet is likely to be restricted, which can make it hard to maintain good nutrition. It is common for the jaw bone to resorb (shrink) when most or all your teeth are missing in one jaw, which can make the skin around your lower face and jowls sag, and can even alter your facial proportions.
Choose dental implants
By choosing dental implants to replace your teeth, you can avoid or reverse these problems, along with the issues caused by loose-fitting traditional dentures. Rather than keeping your teeth in a glass by your bed at night you can rest assured they will stay firmly in your mouth always, looking and acting like their natural counterparts.
HOW DENTAL IMPLANTS CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR THE BETTER
Dental implants are a modern and permanent solution to tooth loss. At the The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol, our implant dentist, Dr Jonathan Cochrane, can use implants to replace anything from one to all your natural teeth, and can treat everything from a simple single-crown placement to a complex full-mouth restoration, requiring additional bone graft or sinus lift procedures to rebuild the density of your jaw bone prior to implant placement.
It’s not an overstatement to say that dental implants can change your life. Whether you are currently lacking the confidence to smile because you have a gap in your smile line, your life is being made miserable by badly-fitting, constantly slipping dentures, or indeed anything in between, implants can help.
Dental implants are small titanium screws or posts that act as bionic tooth roots. They are placed in direct contact with your jaw bone in a minor operation, which is carried out here at our Bristol dental practice under either local anaesthetic or sedation.
This direct contact with your jaw bone is important for two reasons: first, it helps to prevent bone resorption or shrinkage, which is often seen in patients with several or all their teeth missing and is one of the prime causes of loose dentures. Secondly, it holds your new teeth firmly in place and gives you back the sensation and function of a healthy jaw.
Unlike traditional dentures, that are prone to slip and make it hard to eat healthily and speak clearly, and traditional bridges that require adjacent teeth to be used for support – often meaning healthy tooth structure is lost from these teeth during preparatory work – dental implants should last for many years without problems, so long as you visit our Bristol dental practice for regular maintenance appointments.
Life benefits enjoyed by patients who have had dental implants placed at our Bristol clinic include:
- The ability to eat what they like, with no dietary restrictions
- No danger of embarrassing denture slippage affecting your social life
- Maintenance of a healthy jaw bone
- Ability to speak clearly and confidently
- New teeth that could last a lifetime
If you require dental implants in Bristol and you have low bone density then contact us today to arrange an initial consultation.