A gap in your smile can be from simply missing a tooth, that never developed or losing a tooth from decay, gum disease or trauma.

The most common reason is gum disease, which is a world-wide problem even in developed countries.

Smokers and Diabetics are more prone to tooth loss through gum disease.

Gum disease affects the gums and roots of the teeth, leading to bone loss, mobility and eventually loss of teeth.

Placing a tooth back restores confidence, speech and oral function. Sometimes however it is either not a simple process or just seems very expensive.

A simple solution would be to wear an acrylic denture, but they can become loose or break and you may then be left without a tooth/teeth for a few weeks.

The trouble with dentures is that they can be unstable and do not feel like your own teeth.

Most patients would prefer a fixed solution.

Bridgework involves trimming down adjacent teeth and cementing crowns over them, and carrying Pontic or false crowns as part of a bridge.

This can be a good solution if there are good strong teeth to hold the bridge or if there are enough support teeth.

Usually however with ageing the teeth become heavily filled or loose and are not good support teeth.

A dental implant uses the bone to replace a missing teeth. The bone grows around the Titanium implant and a crown is then attached. This process is called osseointegration and was developed in 1965.

Dental implants like bridges can be used in a multiple series and replace many missing teeth.

This case above highlights a 45 year old gentleman who lost 4 upper front teeth in an accident. He was wearing a denture but due to his bite found the denture became loose.

We agreed to place 4 upper implants into the upper jaw. After 6 months we were able to attach a 4 unit fixed metal acrylic bridge onto the implant heads. All the time the gentleman wore his upper denture until the bridge was attached.

The bridge is fixed, but can be taken off by the dentist in case of a fracture.

The implants are loaded when chewing and this stops bone loss had there been no implants.

The face, smile, soft tissue and lips are all fully complimented with a fixed implant bridge.

Dental implants have a success rate of about 95% and can last from 10-20 years or longer if oral hygiene is maintained.

We offer same day teeth in conjunction with 3D scanning and planning, and you would never be without any teeth.

Sometimes we can place implants without the need for surgery and stitches.

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