If you are missing one or multiple teeth, you may have heard that dental implant surgery is a tooth replacement option. Dental implants are the most cost-effective and permanent option for tooth replacement. Missing teeth can cause serious oral and general health issues over time, and restoring your natural smile with dental implants can help protect your wellbeing and boost your confidence.
You may have wondered, what does a dental implant look like? The finished product looks exactly like your natural tooth and blends perfectly with the shade, colour, and shapes of your other teeth.
What Does a Dental Implant Look Like?: Components of a Dental Implant
While the result looks like a natural tooth, there are three components to a dental implant:
- Titanium post
- Abutment
- Crown
Titanium Post
The titanium post or screw serves as your new tooth’s root. Titanium is one of the most biocompatible durable metals available, making it an excellent choice to withstand intense bite pressure and reduce the chance of dental implant rejection.
After your initial consultation, any additional extractions, and sinus lifts or bone grafts, you’ll be scheduled for your dental implant surgery. Your dentist uses local anaesthesia or IV sedation to help you feel more comfortable. They use a special tool to insert the titanium post into your jawbone. The dentist then sutures the gums over the implant if they don’t place the abutment on the same day.
The titanium screw measures between 3.4 mm and 5.8 mm in diameter. It is very tiny but extremely powerful for holding your new tooth in place. Once your dentist places your crown, you won’t be able to see the implant.
The post takes 3-6 months to fuse completely with your jaw bone in a process called osseointegration. During this time, your bone grows around the titanium screw, securing it into a permanent position. Once this happens, you can expect your titanium implant to last you for the rest of your life with proper oral hygiene practices.
After osseointegration, you’ll return to your No Gaps Dental dentist for the abutment.
The Abutment
The abutment attaches to the top of your dental implant. This is a small, ball-shaped connector that screws into your dental implant post. It prevents the gum tissue from growing over or into your dental implant, which can compromise your oral health and the integrity of the implant. In some cases, your dentist can fit the abutment on the same day as your dental implant procedure.
If you need to return to have it placed, you may need a local anaesthetic if your dentist sutured gum tissue over the implant. Your dentist will remove this tissue before placing the abutment.
At this point, your dentist may send you home with temporary teeth until your gums are healed. When they are healed, your dentist takes impressions of your mouth to custom-make your permanent crown.
The Crown
Once your crown is ready, you’ll return to the practice for your final appointment after dental implant surgery. The crown attaches to the abutment, and your dentist checks for bite alignment, shape, colour, and other factors to ensure you are satisfied with your restored smile.
With proper care, your crown can last between 15-25 years. Our No Gaps Dental professionals ask you to return between 3-9 months after your crown fitting so we can check to ensure everything is in place and healed properly. You can resume your twice-annual check-ups after this final appointment in your dental implant procedure.
What Does a Dental Implant Look Like?: Replacement Options
You can replace a single tooth, consecutive teeth, or an entire arch of teeth with dental implant surgery. Implant-supported bridges are a permanent restoration option for those who are missing two or more teeth in one area of your mouth. In general, two dental implants can support up to five crowns.
If you’re missing an entire arch of teeth, you can opt for 4-6 strategically placed titanium posts. This dental implant procedure uses the posts to support a replacement arch of teeth. It’s an excellent alternative for patients who struggle with poorly fitting dentures or who just don’t want to have to worry about denture replacements every 5-7 years.
What Does a Dental Implant Look Like?: After Dental Implant Surgery
Immediately following your dental implant procedure, you’ll need to drink plenty of cool liquids and chew only soft foods as your mouth heals. However, once your final crown is placed, you can eat, chew, talk, and brush and floss just like normal.
For patients who choose dental implant surgery, they can return to all their regular activities. Unless you tell close friends, family, or coworkers, no one except for a trained dentist will be able to tell you to have dental implants instead of your natural teeth.
One of the primary benefits of dental implants, besides convenience, is their ability to maintain your jawbone’s structure. Without the pressure provided by chewing, the bone in the missing tooth area begins to disintegrate. Over time, this affects the surrounding area, compromising the roots and structural integrity of nearby teeth. If you’ve had orthodontic procedures to straighten your teeth, bone loss can cause shifting and misalignment, ruining the straight smile you love.
If you’re missing several teeth, the disintegration of your jawbone can cause your facial structure to collapse. With dental implants, you not only maintain the strength of your jawbone, but you can retain the shape and structure of your face.
Contact Us to Restore Your Smile
We can help you restore the look and feel of your natural teeth with dental implant surgery. For more information on our dental implant procedure and payment options, book an appointment at one of our 15 convenient locations. Call us on (02) 8806 0227.
Note: Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks.