DENTAL IMPLANTS: SOLUTIONS FOR PATIENTS WITH MULTIPLE MISSING TEETH

By using dental implants, a dentist can permanently restore not just your smile, but also the full functionality of a healthy jaw. At the The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol, our implant work is carried out by Dr Jonathan Cochrane, a highly-experienced implant dentist who can treat even the most complex cases, where additional work is needed to rebuild jaw bone density prior to implant placement.

If you have lost several of your natural teeth in either jaw, a multiple tooth dental implant solution could be perfect for you. Whether you are currently wearing a full or partial denture, have gaps in your smile, or have been told that your remaining teeth are failing, we invite you to join us at our Bristol practice for a consultation with Dr Jonathan Cochrane to find out more about how we can help.

Advantages of dental implants

Dental implants have several advantages over traditional dentures. They are the only permanent method by which a dentist can replace your missing teeth, and are the only option for replacing tooth roots.

When the tooth roots are missing, the jaw bone is likely to resorb or shrink back. This can cause a prematurely aged appearance as the facial skin sags, and can also make the placement of dental implants more complicated, although still possible. At our Bristol clinic, our implant dentist can use bone grafting procedures to rebuild the density in your jaw bone to suitable levels to support dental implants.

Bone resorption can cause loose dentures, making them uncomfortable and impacting your diet, speech, and confidence.

HOW DENTAL IMPLANTS CAN RESTORE YOUR SMILE – EVEN IF FEAR OF THE DENTIST CAUSED YOUR TOOTH LOSS

You may have heard of dental implants to replace missing teeth, but if fear of the dentist lies behind your tooth loss, the thought of oral surgery may be terrifying. At the The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol, we urge you to get in touch. We are highly experienced in working with nervous and phobic patients, and wish only to help you get back to good oral health.

Fear of the dentist is very common, with approximately one in six adults in the UK so scared of dental treatment that they simply refuse to go. This often means that their oral health starts to suffer, and a perfectly treatable problem becomes increasingly serious, sometimes to the point of tooth loss.

At our Bristol dental practice, we empathise with nervous patients, and will always treat you with the utmost care and respect – fear of the dentist, or poor oral health caused by it, is nothing to be ashamed of. We also think, however, that in 2016 fear should no longer be a barrier to treatment. You deserve a healthy, happy mouth, and we can work with you to help you achieve it.

Dental implants replace the root portions of missing teeth, and hold realistic-looking false teeth – a single crown, a bridge, or a denture – firmly in place with a similar strength to that of natural tooth roots. You may think that now you’ve started losing teeth you are beyond help, but our Bristol implants team have a solution.

For nervous patients, we can place dental implants under conscious sedation with our dual qualified, dental implant and sedation trained dental surgeon, Dr Jonathan Cochrane. This isn’t the same as general anaesthetic – you will be awake, thus able to cooperate with your dentist, but will be in a very peaceful and relaxed state. Most patients remember little about treatment afterwards.

Just like natural teeth, dental implants and the new teeth affixed to them need regular follow-up dental appointments to keep them healthy. Because you won’t want to lose your teeth a second time, our Bristol team will work with you to beat your fear.

USE DENTAL IMPLANTS TO GET A SECOND CHANCE AT HEALTHY TEETH

Dental implants offer people who have lost one or more teeth a second chance at having a healthy jaw. At the The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol, we believe that implants are often the best solution to tooth loss, offering as they do the full functionality of natural teeth with none of the problems associated with traditional dentures.

Dental implants in Bristol

At our Bristol dental practice we can use dental implants to replace one, some, or even all your natural teeth. In the case of several or all missing teeth, the good news is that you are unlikely to need as many implants as new teeth. Thanks to the precision planning carried out by your Bristol implant dentist, several teeth – in the form of a dental bridge or denture – can usually be supported by a few implants.

When you come for your implant assessment your dentist will check your bone density and work out how many dental implants are required.

For those patients who have suffered bone resorption, for example those wearing dentures for years, your dentist will explain your bone grafting options.

WHY DENTAL IMPLANTS ARE OFTEN THE PERFECT SOLUTION TO MISSING TEETH

With dental implants, a dentist has a permanent way of replacing missing teeth. At the The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol we have a highly experienced implantology team, who can treat even complex cases requiring additional work to rebuild your jaw bone.

If you are keen to learn more about how dental implants could help you, read on to discover how implant treatment could just be the perfect solution to your missing teeth.

How dental implants work

Standard bridges and dentures only replace the crown portions of missing teeth. Without anything to replace the tooth roots, you are highly likely to experience bone loss, which happens because without the roots in place the jaw bone is prone to resorb or shrink.

Dental implants offer a better solution. Bionic tooth roots crafted out of titanium, implants are osteoconductive. This means that they help to stop bone resorption, and with it the additional problems of premature sagging of the skin around the jowls and dentures that become increasingly loose over time.

At the The Bristol Dental Practice in Bristol, we place dental implants under local anaesthetic. If you are afraid of the dentist (as one in ten people in the UK are) your dental health is likely to have suffered, and this is a common cause of tooth loss. For that reason, we also offer treatment under sedation at our Bristol dental practice with Dr Jonathan Cochrane, which means that whilst you will be awake and able to cooperate with instructions, you will be pain-free and will remember little or even nothing about treatment once it is complete.

Sometimes, your permanent new teeth can be fitted at the same time as your dental implants, in a procedure known as Same Day Teeth. In other cases, a healing period of a few months is best to maximise your implants’ chance of success. You will be advised of the best option for your case when you come to the The Bristol Dental Practice for a consultation.

Dental implants restore more than just your smile; they also give you back the full functionality of a jaw full of natural teeth to replace your multiple missing teeth.

WILL GETTING DENTAL IMPLANTS HURT?

At our practice, we understand that many patients are put off having procedures because they fear they will be painful. However, we would like to reassure you that dental implant treatment is not painful, and is nothing to be afraid of.

Dental implants are placed in a minor surgical procedure. This is carried out here in the practice, and for many patients it can be done under local anaesthetic.

A lot of patients report they experience less discomfort having dental implants placed than they do with tooth extractions. Just like with extractions, if fear of pain or difficulty getting numb is putting you off getting dental implants, we can perform the treatment under sedation. We have a resident seditionist (Dr Jonathan Cochrane) who will deliver intravenous (IV) sedation and monitor you continuously for the duration of your treatment. When you are under sedation you will remain conscious, so can cooperate with any instructions from your dentist, but will be relaxed and largely unaware of treatment, and will experience no pain.

A key element of implant placement is precision. We use the Simplant computer-guided implant treatment system, a surgical guide that, combined with a CT scan of your jaw, enables us to precisely place implants in the jawbone, avoiding any damage to nerves.

Dr Jonathan Cochrane is a highly-experienced implant dentist, renowned for the quality of his work. He holds an MSc in Dental Implantology from the respected University of Bristol and is experienced in complex implant cases.

As with tooth extractions, you may experience some mild discomfort for a few days after your implants are placed, while the healing process begins. We can provide you with advice and analgesia to control this, although many patients find that over-the-counter pain medication is enough to manage any discomfort.