Something many people will need at some point is dental implants. Dental implants are inserted into a person’s mouth on a metal post that is designed to replace the root of a tooth. It’s a permanent solution for problems that result in tooth failure and tooth loss. If you may be thinking about the possibility of obtaining dental implants, below are four times when doing so is the best choice.
Your Crown Has Failed
One scenario when getting a dental implant is that it’s the best choice after the failure of a crown. A root canal followed by the installation of a crown is usually the first choice for dentists to solve tooth failure. Through this method, part of the tooth is retained. However, a crown may only last 10 years. After that crown fails, the only choice usually is to install a dental implant as a replacement.
Your Tooth Has Snapped Off
In certain cases, the damage to a tooth may be so severe that a crown isn’t even a feasible solution. This may, for example, be the case for injuries where the mouth was impacted by a foreign object. One or more teeth may have broken off completely. In that case, a dentist, someone like Smiles By Hogan, may suggest simply having dental implants installed and skip over the option of crowns since not enough of the tooth may remain to make a crown viable.
Too Much Decay Has Set In
The biggest threat to teeth people face is tooth decay. Decay usually starts out with cavities in which bacteria create tiny holes in the enamel of a tooth. This is usually solved by drilling and filling those cavities. However, for people that have neglected their teeth for too long, the decay may be too extensive to save the tooth. Most of the tooth’s structure may be rotten and no longer salvageable. In this case, the only two options are extraction or replacing the tooth with a dental implant.
When Your Jawbone Is At Risk
One of the worst things about tooth loss is that it doesn’t only affect your teeth. It also affects your jawbone. When your teeth fail, your jawbone is also put at risk of failing as well because it deteriorates without the presence of teeth. However, dental implants can help prevent this. Unlike other options for tooth loss, dental implants actually preserve the jawbone from deteriorating further.
For many issues involving tooth loss, dental implants are the best solution. This is true when your jawbone is at risk, the tooth was snapped off completely, tooth decay is too far set in or a crown has failed. Talk over the possibility with your dentist.
About the author:
Kara Masterson is a freelance writer from Utah. She graduated from the University of Utah and enjoys writing and spending time with her dog, Max.