If you have missing teeth, cosmetic dentistry may be an option for you. Cosmetic dentistry provides opportunities to replace missing teeth with artificial ones like crowns and bridges, veneers, and dental implants. Dental implants are a more long-lasting solution for people with missing teeth.
What do dental implants feel like? Do they feel natural? How can you make sure dental implants fit your mouth? Your dentist can help determine the best artificial tooth option and walk you through dental implants when you visit them.
Dental implants are a type of artificial root and tooth meant to replace missing teeth. While most people lose teeth naturally throughout their life as their jaw and gums grow, dental implants are an option for people who have missing adult teeth. Adult teeth go missing teeth for a few identifiable reasons:
It’s essential to understand that a dental implant replaces the tooth root, not the tooth itself. When your doctor discusses a dental implant with you, they are referring to a titanium replacement root. The titanium implant consists of a screw and post surgically placed in your gum and jaw.
On top of the implant sits an artificial tooth. This artificial tooth serves as the replacement for your missing tooth. The nature of implants and artificial teeth means they won’t feel the same as your regular teeth.
When you understand the structure of your regular teeth, you can better grasp how they feel sensations and send information to your brain. Your tooth consists of five key parts:
Like every other part of your body where you feel sensations, like in your fingers or skin, your teeth contain blood vessels and nerves. These blood vessels and nerves sit in the root of your tooth, deep in the centre of your tooth. The nerves in your teeth help you regulate how much force you need to chew.
Dental implants can’t provide the same feeling as your regular teeth because they don’t contain the important blood vessels and nerves to provide input to your brain on sensations like temperature, pressure, and pain. However, your dentist can help shape them to feel as close to natural teeth as possible.
For the most part, dental implants are made of titanium because it fuses with the jaw bone, creating a solid bond and a solid base for the artificial tooth to sit on. Artificial teeth are made of a few different materials. The material used for your artificial tooth depends on location, durability, and material strength.
Porcelain is a hard material that allows your dentist to match the colour of your natural teeth. Porcelain artificial teeth look natural, and because the material is so hard, they are incredibly durable and long-lasting.
Since porcelain can look more natural, your dentist can use porcelain artificial teeth for implants to replace more visible front teeth.
Gold, nickel, and palladium are the most commonly used metals for artificial teeth. These metals are hard and can withstand a lot of force from chewing. However, they don’t look very natural because they are often gold or silver coloured.
Metal artificial teeth are often a good option for replacing molars at the back of your mouth, for example, because of their durability and colour.
Resin is a synthetic compound that can be easily moulded into different shapes, making it an ideal material for creating artificial teeth. However, resin isn’t as hard as porcelain or metal, which means it can break more easily.
Your Chatham dentist at Garcia Dental Care can go through all of these options and more with you when you visit them for your dental implant consultation. They’ll walk you through the process and help you decide if dental implants are the right tooth replacement option for you.
Book an appointment today at either our Queen Street or Richmond Street office. We can’t wait to see you and help your smile shine!
