For years, appliances used to replace missing teeth only took care of the
issue from the gumline up. The tooth roots were left gone, and while this
looked fine at first, it actually allowed a host of problems to arise as time
went on. These partial solutions still have the same issues plaguing them
because they still do nothing to replace the root. The problems are most
evident with full dentures – they often slip around, they have to be adjusted
repeatedly, and eventually, they stop fitting altogether. With partial
dentures, otherwise known as bridges, it takes longer for problems to show up.
Eventually, however, the teeth on either side of them will start to shift. What
causes these problems?
The problems associated with old-fashioned false teeth are caused by the
deterioration of the bone where the natural teeth are missing. The bone is
actually broken down, or resorbed, by the body itself due to a lack of proper
stimulation in the affected area. Jaw bone must encounter chewing pressure in
order to stay strong, and this pressure is transferred into it by the roots of
the teeth. Pressure on the edge of the bone ridge, as is applied by dentures,
is not enough to do the job.
Dental implants Chicago eliminate the problem of lack of stimulation by
including an artificial tooth root instead of just having the crown. This root
serves all of the important purposes of a real one: It transmits chewing forces
into the bone to keep it strong, and it provides an excellent anchor point for
the crown. Since it is implanted into the bone, it also makes it so that the
tooth or teeth on top of it can't slip around and will never lose their fit.
Most dental implants are meant to be fully permanent. The crown is cemented
onto the post in the same way crowns are cemented onto natural tooth roots, and
the combined unit is then treated the same as a natural tooth for hygiene
purposes. When single teeth are replaced, each crown gets its own implanted
root. If a patient needs a full set of teeth put in, then fewer posts are used and
a set of crowns is attached to those posts as a single unit. Either way, the
implant system provides far better results than dentures or bridges and is
preferred by patients whenever it's a feasible option.
