How to Replace Missing Teeth and Restore your Smile

People lose one or more teeth for various reasons, the most pressing of which are tooth decay, gum diseases, and aging. When it happens, it’s normal for you to feel conscious about your smile. Not having a good set of teeth is a blow to many people’s confidence.

Aside from your looks, you also experience many difficulties when it comes to your mouth. Your teeth are made for chewing food to make it easier to swallow. Missing some of them will make eating inconvenient. Plus, your ability to articulate words suffers. These problems alone make it easy to see how the effects of tooth loss can be drastic.

Fortunately, technology has made many strides in the dental restorative industry. There are now several solutions to replace the teeth you lost.

Here are some of the most effective ones.

Dental Implant Surgery

Dental implants are becoming increasingly popular because of their tried-and-tested durability and appearance. Unless you tell someone that what you have are implants, there’s no giving away that your teeth are artificial. Many see them as modern technology’s gift to the dental industry, with faux teeth almost mirroring real ones nowadays.

Currently, this is the only tooth replacement solution that gives patients a new tooth and root. As its name suggests, a faux tooth is planted in the jaw. A small titanium post acts as the root to secure it directly into the bone.

Dental implants are quite expensive, so they may not be a practical choice for everyone. But if you have medical insurance, try checking your coverage as the costs of implants may be included.

Either way, you can rest assured that dental implants are good investments if you choose to get them done by a professional.

Implant-Supported Bridge

If you have multiple missing teeth in a row, a dental implant-supported bridge may be the best choice. Unlike dental implants, where each tooth is securely screwed on the jawbone, a whole selection of faux teeth connected to each other is used. Only the ones at the ends are fastened to the bone. The rest in the middle are held in place without screws.

Like dental implants, this solution looks realistic. It could also be a more economical choice for patients who can’t afford specific implants on every missing tooth. When their budget permits, those teeth connected as bridges can be replaced with more permanent prosthetics.

Removable Partial Dentures

While some patients prefer permanent teeth replacements, there are those who still prefer the old-school fix. These are removable partial dentures.

While these are a bit outdated in today’s terms, they’re not without proven effectiveness. Dentists recommend complete dentures for patients who need to have all their teeth removed and replaced, while removable partial dentures are for those who only need a few.

As you may have already seen in many of your older relatives, removable partial dentures are a type of dental appliance. They consist of rows of artificial teeth attached to a natural-looking pink base that matches the gum’s colors.

Many patients may prefer this solution since it’s among the most budget-friendly ones in the industry. It’s also easier to maintain and clean than other tooth replacement options.

Bonding

Bonding is another long-term fix, though it’s not as permanent. Depending on how extensive the procedure was, most bonding jobs last around ten years. 

In this procedure, your dentist uses a tooth-colored material to match your existing smile. This is then bonded and shaped into the current structure to fill in gaps.

Bonding is usually the treatment option for those who only have partially chipped or broken teeth.

Tooth-Supported Fixed Bridge

With this tooth replacement procedure, your dentists use your teeth to support the bridge. They usually perform this to replace a single tooth rather than multiple teeth. 

You may get recommended this solution to keep adjacent teeth from falling out. But compared to removable dentures, a tooth-supported fixed bridge is more expensive. If you go for this, you should also be willing to put in extra work for oral cleaning and hygiene.

Moreover, if your goal is to prevent tooth loss, know that a tooth-supported fixed bridge doesn’t offer all the results you want. A dental implant would be the better choice.

Consult your orthodontist for more advice on which is the best option for your problem. It’s best to iron this out before making any long-term choices.

Regain your Smile

Restoring your smile’s former glory is achievable with cosmetic dental procedures like these. That’s not everything either; there are more options available as medicine continues to advance. You can find the solutions that suit your needs by working with the right dental experts. Reach out and start making inquiries.

Of course, nothing replaces the importance of preventing teeth loss altogether. Start investing in your hygiene to keep your smile in your later years.