Save Your Smile with Dental Implants

The loss of just one tooth can affect your smile, causing crooked teeth, a weaker jawbone and more cavities. Replacing a lost tooth with a dental implant is an excellent way to save your smile and improve your appearance. Dr. John Sartorio, your Pittsburgh dentist, explains how you can benefit from dental implants.

Dental implants get to the root of the problem

Tooth roots are more important than you may realize. Roots constantly stimulate the jawbone under your teeth, keeping it strong and healthy. Although bridges and dentures can replace missing teeth, neither of these options provide stimulation to your jawbone. Without that stimulation, your jawbone eventually recedes and shortens.

Titanium dental implants are placed in small holes in your jawbone, replacing your tooth roots. Once in place, they act just like your natural roots and provide the stimulation your jawbone needs to stay strong.

Implants make chewing and speaking easier

The loss of a tooth can make biting and chewing more difficult, particularly if you've lost a molar. The problem becomes more severe if you've lost several teeth. Because dental implants act just like natural teeth, you can continue to chew and bite normally. When you replace missing teeth with dentures, you lose some biting power, which makes it difficult or impossible to eat hard foods. That's never a problem with a dental implant from your Pittsburgh dentist.

Dental implants prevent other problems

After you lose a tooth, surrounding teeth tend to drift toward the opening. When these teeth overlap, they're more likely to be injured if you're accidentally hit in the mouth with an object. Crooked or overlapping teeth can also increase your risk of cavities because it's more difficult to remove cavity-causing plaque from every surface.

Dental implant care is easy

Caring for your implant isn't any different than caring for your natural teeth. After your implant bonds to the surrounding bone, a process that usually takes three to six months, a crown will added to the top of the implant. The crown replaces your tooth above the gum line. You'll brush and floss the crown just as you do your other teeth. Flossing is particularly important because failing to floss can lead to an infection that may cause implant failure. Fortunately, if you maintain a good oral hygiene routine, you won't have to worry about an infection.

Do dental implants sound like the perfect solution to your problem? Call Dr. John Sartorio, your Pittsburgh dentist, at (412) 831-8700 to find out if this tooth replacement solution is a good option for you. Transform your smile with dental implants!