If you’ve recently lost teeth, you may be looking at your different restoration options for getting your smile back. Dental implants are a great option functionally and cosmetically as they look very similar to your natural teeth. However, not just anyone is able to get these “new teeth.” How can you qualify for dental implants? Your dentist will need to examine your mouth to make sure your gum tissue is healthy enough and you have a good amount of bone density. Without these things, your implants may fall out of your mouth.
How Do Implants Work?
After they are installed, dental implants take the next three to six months to fuse directly with your jaw bone. In doing this, they become permanent replacement teeth that cannot be damaged from infection – lasting up to an entire lifetime.
Once placed, your dentist will put a dental crown over the top portion of the implant to shape it like a natural tooth. This allows it to function cosmetically, while its stability and permanency allows it to perform daily functions (like chewing).
What If Your Gum Tissue Isn’t Considered “Healthy Enough?”
Don’t give up just yet – often times, if your gum tissue or bone density isn’t quite healthy enough to qualify for dental implants immediately, your dentist can recommend treatments or procedures to help re-build your mouth. Surgeries like bone or tissue grafts and guided tissue regeneration (GTR) are just a couple that your dentist may recommend in these cases.
