Dental Implants

Implants and Restorative Dental Treatments

Today more and more people are realising the importance of their appearance. As we know first impressions last and an attractive smile builds self-confidence. Your confidence about your teeth affects how you feel about yourself, both personally and professionally. Perhaps you hide your smile because of spaces from missing teeth. Maybe your dentures don’t feel secure. Perhaps you have difficulty chewing. With dental implant treatments you can achieve secure, natural looking teeth and the confidence that comes with it.

A dental implant is an artificial tooth root used to support restorations that resemble a tooth or group of teeth. Implants can be used to:

• Replace a single missing tooth
• Form part of a bridge filling larger gaps
• Secure dentures firmly
• Create a full set of new teeth

Our Implantologist
Dr Andrew Hall
BDS, FDS, RCS

• Andrew qualified in 1988 and in 1992 he became a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons.
• He has over 20 years experience in Implant and Reconstructive Dentistry.
• Andrew has worked in several hospitals, lectured in the University of Bristol and given many talks in this field.
• He undertakes numerous courses, to ensure he maintains his position at the forefront of implant and reconstructive dentistry.

Single Tooth Replacement

Simply missing one tooth can lead to many problems. As well as the obvious issues of appearance and hindering basic functions such as eating and speaking, missing a tooth can cause the neighbouring teeth to drift, which can lead to cleaning issues and gum problems.

Dental implants are the most durable solution for replacing a missing tooth and they are almost aesthetically undetectable from your own teeth. Having a dental implant in between your natural teeth is a very successful dental procedure with success rates around 98%.

Replacing several teeth

If you are missing several teeth, implant-supported bridgescan be used to replace them. As well as looking and functioning like natural teeth, implant-supported bridges fill the gaps without damaging the adjacent natural teethin any way.

An Implant Supported Bridge Replacing Several Missing Teeth

Replacing All Missing Teeth

If you are missing all of your teeth in the jaw, implants can be used to help you in one of two ways. Firstly, we can use multiple implants to support a full fixed bridge. In addition to looking and functioning like natural teeth, implant- supported bridges are designed to be long lasting and are more comfortable and stable than conventional dentures.

An Implant Supported Bridge Replacing All of the Teeth

What to expect with Dental Implant Treatment

Dr Andrew Hall has a huge amount of skill and experience in the field of implants. You can be assured that you are in very safe hands. He is one of only a small number of dentists who devotes all of his clinical time to the practice of Implant Dentistry.

• Following your assessment visit you will be given a written treatment plan which details all the necessary stages and the associated costs.
• As with many things in life, the most important part of the process is the planning stage. At Ridentes Dental Practice, we use the latest implant planning software to ensure we get the optimum results. We can often go one stage further with this technology and perform “Computer Guided Surgery”.

• In some  cases  this  can  mean  that  the  implants  can  be  placed  using“minimally invasive” techniques through small punch holes in the gum.
• The surgery to place the implants is carried out under local anaesthesia and the recovery is generally very quick. Most patients will be able to return to work the following day. For those who are a little anxious about it we can arrange  sedation techniques to help to relax you. Patients often tell us that they experience no more pain than after having a tooth removed.
• If you have lost your teeth a long time ago we can often find that there has been too much shrinkage of the jaw bone to support implants. However, this needn’t be a problem, as Dr Hall is skilled in techniques to regenerate the bone before placing implants. We have successfully been able to treat many patients where other implant surgeons have told them that they were untreatable!
• After the implants have healed into the jaw we can fit the abutments and then commence the treatment to construct the permanent replacements. This can take several visits to ensure that we get the best possible results.
• After the new teeth are fitted it is essential that you look after them and keep them spotlessly clean. Our staff will show you how do this as we want your new set of teeth to last you a lifetime

For further information on any of these services or to book a dental implant appointment, contact us on 01865 370375.

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