Dental Implants: Why There's No Better Choice for Replacing Missing Teeth

Missing teeth are not a good look. Besides looking bad, a mouthful of teeth gone AWOL also can affect your health negatively. Dental implants are great alternatives to dentures and bridges, which traditionally replace missing teeth.

The team at EZ Dental Clinic in Bellevue, Washington, is eager to explain why there’s no better choice for replacing missing teeth than dental implants.

What happens when you lose a tooth?

Here’s a little (a very little) dental anatomy.

Teeth have roots that grow deep into your jawbone. These roots anchor your teeth, giving them stability and strength. Your jawbone tissue is always renewing itself, giving needed support to the areas that do the work of chewing and talking.

When a tooth goes missing, your roots are lost, too. Your bone no longer receives signals that the area is active, so the tissue stops renewing itself. Over time, the jawbone deteriorates, which can cause surrounding teeth to shift and loosen. Eventually, your remaining teeth become so compromised that they, too, must go. 

How do implants work?

Dental implants look and act like real teeth. Unlike dentures, which typically spend the night soaking in a glass, dental implants are permanent because they create a new root in your jawbone.

A titanium post lies at the heart of a dental implant. Dr. Ilya Miloslavskiy inserts the post into your jawbone, which over months grabs and fuses with the implant, producing new bone tissue around the post.  

When the post is firmly in place, we cover it with a crown that looks and functions like a real, permanent tooth.

Other prosthetic options, like bridges or dentures, don’t create a root. Over time, you’ll still lose tissue in your bone.

Implant benefits 

Not only do dental implants guard against jawbone erosion, but they also stay in place because they are rooted in your jaw. The stability of other prosthetics, like bridges, relies on neighboring teeth. Also, installing bridges requires damaging surrounding “anchor” teeth. With dental implants, no other teeth are harmed.

Dental implants have other benefits:

• They support facial tissue, so your face continues to look like you
• They can replace single or multiple teeth
• Rate of success is high 
• Maintenance and care is the same as for other teeth
• They last for decades

What to expect when getting implants

Dental implants require a few appointments. 

First, you’ll have a consultation with Dr. Miloslavskiy, who determines if dental implants are the best way to replace your missing teeth.

Next, the implant post is surgically set into your jaw under a local anesthetic. Over a few months, jawbone tissue fuses with the post. Once the post is firmly in place, you’ll wear a temporary crown while the permanent crown is being made.

If you think dental implants are for you, call EZ Dental Clinic at 425-746-6090, email us at info@ezdentalbellevue.com, or request an appointment online.