Monday, March 23, 2015

Top 5 Benefits of Implant Supported Dentures

Have you been researching options to replace your missing teeth? If so, you’re among company. Around 5% of the population has no teeth at all, and, according to the CDC, this number jumps up to 25% for those aged 60 or older.

There are a lot of different routes you can take to restore your smile. At Rose Wang Dental and Associates, one of the services we offer to replace missing teeth is implant dentures. It’s a straightforward procedure that has become very popular throughout the United States. Although there are a lot of reasons why implant supported dentures are a great choice, these five rise above the rest.

1. The Stability of Your Dentures Will Improve

If you already have dentures, you’re probably familiar with their shortcomings. Sometimes they wiggle, don’t fit right, and require adhesives. With implant supported dentures, the implants literally anchor the denture in place permanently, so there’s no movement, and no need for adhesives.

2. They Feel Better

Some people avoid wearing a removable prosthesis entirely if it causes discomfort. Because implant dentures fit better, they feel superior to traditional ones, too. There’s no rocking back and forth, and there aren’t any sore spots from rubbing or uneven pressure.

3. You’ll Be Able to Eat the Foods You Love Again

A lot of people have to give up the foods they love as the result of an ill-fitting apparatus, or because it’s difficult to eat most foods with missing teeth. Sometimes, it’s just plain uncomfortable to eat certain foods.Other times, there’s fear that the false teeth might fall out or shift and cause embarrassment. With implant dentures, the appliance stays firmly in place, so you can eat comfortably and confidently. This can also have a huge impact on your overall health if you’ve been avoiding wholesome foods, like fruits and vegetables, because they’re too tough to eat.

4. You Can Maintain a Youthful Appearance

Have you ever noticed how older people sometimes have a mouth that puckers inward? That’s not a normal part of aging. When a person has a missing tooth, the bone surrounding the area begins to deteriorate. As more teeth are lost, the jaw begins to take on the concave look that most people associate with aging. This is also why a traditional prosthesis requires relines and adjustments every few years- the shape of the jaw is literally changing. Because implants are designed to function much like natural teeth, they can slow this process of bone loss and sometimes stop it altogether.

5. You Can Return to Your Normal Life Faster and Save Money

Implant supported dentures utilize just a few implants to provide you with improved form and function over a traditional prosthesis. Compared to replacing all of your missing teeth with implants, it’s a much more economical solution. It’s also less complicated, as well as less invasive, so you can return to normal activities sooner. If you’d like to see how the process works, please see the videos we’ve posted on our page about dentures.

Nashua Missing Tooth Specialist

There isn’t a one-size-fits all approach when it comes to restoring smiles. At Rose Wang Dental and Associates, we can guide you through all the options available, and help you choose the best one for your particular needs. Please contact us at rosewangdental.com to schedule a consultation.

Saturday, March 21, 2015

How to Avoid the Complications of Missing Teeth

According to an article in the New York Times, almost 70% of adults between the ages of 35 and 44 have least one missing tooth. By the time the average American reaches 50, he’s lost 12 teeth. After age 65, a quarter or more have lost all of their teeth. Of course, the best way to avoid the complications of missing teeth is to keep all of your natural ones. However, despite good homecare and routine dental check-ups, most of us will have to decide how to manage a missing tooth at some point in our lives.

There Are Many Complications that Arise When You’re Missing Teeth

Before we examine how to overcome the issues, it’s important to understand what problems arise as a result of missing teeth.
  1. Bone Loss- When teeth are lost, the bone that once surrounded the root begins to be resorbed by the body. If it’s just a single tooth, the jawbone may wind up with a dip, but as more are lost, the entire mouth can take on a sunken appearance.
  2. Empty Spaces Collect Food- Gaps between your teeth, as well as the depression where the tooth was, tend to collect food. This increases the chances of decay on neighboring teeth, can lead to periodontal disease, and is a source of bad breath.
  3. Shifting Teeth- With nothing to bite on and to hold the space open, teeth throughout the mouth begin to drift. Tooth misalignment makes it difficult to clean properly, and it’s often unsightly.
  4. Difficulty Eating- Many people who are missing teeth have trouble eating. Because of this, nutrition, as well as overall health, suffers.
  5. Loss of Confidence- Between appearance and bad breath, people often begin to avoid social situations, or find themselves covering their mouth and smiling less.

Options in Missing Tooth Replacement

There are a myriad of options available if you’d like to restore your smile. Certain factors like overall health, which teeth need to be replaced, and finances will likely come into play as you decide which solutions are best for you.

Bridges

If only one or two teeth are missing, a bridge may be used to fill the gap. In this procedure, teeth on either side are typically fitted with crowns, and a false tooth is affixed between them. There are several variants of bridges, so if you’d like to learn more, please see rosewangdental.com for an in-depth explanation and videos.

Dentures

Another common replacement option is removable dentures. They can be designed to replace an entire arch of teeth, which is called a full denture, or to replace just a few, which is referred to as a partial denture. More information is available on our Dentures Page.

Implants

The ideal solution for missing teeth nowadays is to place a dental implant, because it mimics a natural tooth in terms of form and function. With dental implants, a metal implant is anchored into the jawbone, and after it is given time to integrate, a false tooth is attached to the top. The process is described in greater detail on our Dental Implant Page. It’s also possible to use dental implants in conjunction with a bridge.

Implant Supported Dentures

As the name suggests, implant dentures are a hybrid of the two procedures. In this procedure, four to six implants are used to permanently secure a denture in place.

Nashua Missing Tooth Specialist

There isn’t a one-size-fits all approach when it comes to restoring smiles. At Rose Wang Dental and Associates, we can guide you through all the options available, and help you choose the best one for your particular needs. Please contact us at rosewangdental.com to schedule a consultation.

Monday, March 2, 2015

High-Tech Denture Alternatives

cosmetic dentist nashua
There are thousands of Americans living with the complications created by missing or failing teeth, most of whom don’t know there are life-changing solutions available. For many years, a patient’s only choice would have been removable dentures, but in today’s modern era of oral rehabilitation technology, there are much better options to choose from. One of the very best is the All-on-6 dental implant which completely replaces the teeth in a low-cost, simple procedure. This denture alternative provides patients with their own new set of permanent teeth that can be brushed the same as natural teeth, are not taken out, increase the bite force, and do not require adhesives.

The Physical Benefits of Using All-On-6 Dental Implants

Anyone who has dealt with removable dentures knows all too well that there are a number of drawbacks in using them. Not only can adhesives be messy and difficult to work with, they can also cause the dentures to shift around when the wearer is speaking or eating. This can limit a denture user’s diet and make meals far less enjoyable due to reduced taste, texture, and temperature sensations. In addition, removable dentures can cause the wearer to have an unnatural smile or affect their speech, which can create self-confidence issues and cause anxiety in social situations.
Another frustration with dentures involves their care. They must be removed each night and after meals in order to clean, sanitize, and disinfect them. Skipping this important step can cause denture odor, bad breath, and an increase in bacterial growth. Dentures must also be refitted every two to three years, which can become time-consuming and expensive.

Fortunately, All-on-6 dental implants eliminate these problems altogether allowing for a greatly improved quality of life. Unlike wearers of removable dentures, people with dental implants soon all but forget they have them and are able to enjoy foods and activities that were once limited by dentures.

The Medical Benefits of Using All-On-6 Dental Implants

While traditional dental implants are an improvement on dentures, they can still require as many as a dozen implants per jaw in order to give users a complete set of functional teeth. This creates some obvious drawbacks. The procedure itself can be painful and invasive and the high cost of so many implants can become a financial burden. In contrast, patients who choose the All-on-6 dental implant method require just six implants per jaw. A new set of fixed replacement teeth are attached to each jaw in a less invasive, faster procedure. As an added bonus, All-on-6 implants usually reduce the requirement of preliminary bone grafting surgery; a procedure, which normally creates added, expense, time, and discomfort.

Rather than having to wait for this extra surgical step, All-on-6 implants are designed to be functional right away. This means the patient won’t have to wait to use their new teeth! Even those who lack the necessary jawbone volume to support traditional implants can be helped with the innovative technology that All-on-6 dental implants offer.

The many physical and medical benefits of All-on-6 dental implants make this route one of the best and most high-tech alternatives to dentures. They offer an affordable, effective option with superior functionality and require a faster, less invasive procedure than traditional dental implants. To learn more about how All-on-6 dental implants can provide an improved quality of life, contact Dr. Rose Wang in Nashua today.