The revolution in dental implant technology has completely changed the landscape of tooth replacement in south east London. The introduction of of computers and lasers into modern dentistry has made it easier for dentists to offer this treatment. With the use of digital imaging, an implant can be placed with pinpoint precision into position and laser surgery allows the hole to be made in the jawbone, to take the titanium implant, without overly damaging the surrounding gum tissue, which means that the whole operation heals far more quickly than in times gone by. These new techniques have seen made it easier for dentists to offer their patients this treatment, and as it has become commonplace in surgeries, the price of an implant has dropped dramatically. But the greatest advantage of the implant is the versatility of its use; yes it’s great for single tooth replacement as it acts as the new root of the tooth to place the crown upon and once in the mouth, it’s in for good. However its success in this area was soon recognized and the implant’s strength was adapted for other applications. Mini implants, that can be inserted in a day, have been used for keeping dentures firmly in the mouth. They are also used for giving extra support to dental bridges.

Having a gap in your teeth is something that people find really damages their self-esteem. It affects the look of your smile in a negative way so that you might be ashamed to show off what ought to be one of your best assets: a full set of sparkling, white teeth. Tooth loss is more common than you might think and has a variety of causes from dental decay to gum disease to one off accidents which knock teeth out of the mouth.

Dental bridges are one way to sort this out by getting a replacement tooth secured into the mouth, thus restoring the effect of a smart smile and the functionality of your mouth. Essentially dental bridge work involves securing a false tooth to the adjacent tooth or teeth. It is highly adaptable and discreet.

No two dental bridge procedures are the same because your London SE1 dentist will thoroughly examine your mouth in order to determine how best to secure the false tooth. What will be considered primarily is the strength of the teeth which surround the spot where the tooth has been lost.

In the ideal scenario, your false tooth will be secured to the two, strong, healthy teeth on either side of it using dental resin. In practice this I not always possible if one of the teeth is not strong enough or there is only one adjacent tooth. Dental bridges can still work though if there is only one tooth to attach the false tooth to. If it is a front tooth that has been lost, your dentist will carefully conceal the bond so that it is not visible when you smile.

Anyone that wears dentures in London’s SE1 will tell you that one of the biggest problems with them is keeping them in the mouth. Sure, dentures have come an awful long way- the materials from which they are made, the fixatives that are used, all have radically improved, yet, the wearer is still left with that nagging doubt that they may still fall out when eating or talking. But now thanks to the introduction of mini-implants, that embarrassment has all but disappeared. Thanks to micro surgery that leaves very little damage to the gums, these tiny, little bits of titanium can be fitted into the jaw bone in 2 hours. The dentures will be modified and then they simply click onto the implants; combined with a fixative, those dentures are going nowhere. Imagine the benefits when ordering certain types of food at a restaurant. But mini-implants are also favoured a lot more for the fitting of bridges and crowns, for the same reasons as have already mentioned, they offer great back-up support to normal fixing procedures, lengthening the shelf life of the fitting overall. Because implant technology and healing methods have improved dramatically over recent years, they are easier to fit and with that, competitively, the price of having a mini-implants fitted have dropped substantially of late. But then cost should never factor in the improvement of lifestyle that a mini-implant can bring.

Dentures have been around since prehistoric times, and man has been obsessed with them to the extent they have come up with many weird and wonderful ways to make them, says an SE1 London dentist. The Egyptians made them from sea shells and loved the colours they came in, there have also been flint, metal, plastic and even wooden dentures. At one time we used the teeth of animals to make them. Their development has been a long time in the making, and up until recently the problem of food getting lodged under them was still a big problem. These days the new style adhesives make the plate so totally sealed and hygienic that it is impossible for any foreign objects to get behind them, which has been well received by everyone who wears them. They are made out of porcelain these days which is a hard wearing clay mix that is so workable it makes the teeth look really natural. Some people can`t get on with dentures and go for a bridge or implants, but most patients are happy with their dentures. They are made to a custom design using digital photos of the patient’s mouth, that’s why there has been a big increase in their use of late. To keep them clean and germ free they are usually just dropped into a solution of sterilising fluid over night, you don`t clean them in the usual manner with a brush. Many wearers have more than one set, and some even change them on a regular basis for socialising, they are now a fashion item to many people.

Dental implants are among the most successful treatments available in the field of dentistry. While no procedure is 100 per cent effective, the five-year success rate of the average dental implant is 95 per cent. This is just another reason why dental implants are considered the best option for replacing missing teeth.

Dental implants are the small cylindrical screws that are secured directly into the jawbone to support a tooth. Usually made form titanium because of its strength, implants are anchored into the jaw before being left to fuse with the bone and gum tissue in a process called osseointergration. Once full fusion has occurred, the implant can be used to secure a post and ultimately an artificial tooth. Because the implant replaces the whole tooth root, and not just the crown that is proud of the gum tissue it provides a much more realistic alternative than both dental bridges and partial dentures. Dental implants are almost as strong as real teeth meaning there are fewer limits to what the patient may eat or drink.

Implants can be used to replace a single missing tooth or even two or three adjacent teeth lost to decay or dental trauma. A series of five smaller implants are increasingly being used as a solid base to attach dentures. This alleviates anxiety for denture wearers and removes the need to use denture adhesive, which can be unpleasant.

Of all the restorative options available to London SE1 dentists, none has proved to be as consistently reliable and realistic as the dental implant. Patients with missing teeth keen to restore their smile should ask their dentist about their suitability for dental implants at their next appointment.