Dental Implants Riverdale Park

Benefits of Dental Implants

It is impossible to overlook the kinds of benefits dental implants can provide. Superior in nearly every way, they offer patients the chance to recapture a more youthful appearance – one that can be enjoyed for decades. But a more aesthetically pleasing smile isn’t the only advantage to choosing these long-lasting prosthetics. Others include:

• Reduced Risk of Tooth & Bone Loss: Once placed within the jawbone, dental implants deliver stimulation to the area to prevent resorption. As a result, the chances of additional tooth and bone loss are lowered, allowing you to maintain a more supple and vibrant appearance.
• High Success Rate: Upon initial placement, dental implants have a 95% success rate – a percentage that can remain just as high 10 years later if you commit to taking proper care of your new smile.
• A Smile That Lasts: Dentures and dental bridges require replacement after a decade or so; however, dental implants have been known to last 30 years or more. Some cases indicate that these prosthetics can even last a lifetime.
• No Food Restrictions: Apart from the standard caution dentists provide when it comes to eating hard and crunchy foods, there are virtually no food restrictions with dental implants. They act just like natural teeth, so you can enjoy your favorite meals without worrying about your teeth shifting out of place.

The 4 Step Dental Implant Process

Dental implants are a complicated treatment with many moving parts, but the process boils down to four main phases—consultation, surgery, healing, and restoration. And while the minor oral surgery makes the procedure difficult for many dentists to perform in-house, our team has it down to a science. At My Riverdale Dentist, we complete the entire process in-house, from the first consultation to the final restoration. That means no outside specialist, no extra travel, and no referral fees. If you’re curious about how dental implants work in Riverdale, keep reading below.

Initial Dental Implant Consultation

Your treatment begins with a detailed consultation at our Riverdale Park office. During this visit, we’ll examine your mouth, take digital images, and review your medical history. Every piece of information we gather at this stage is necessary to confirm you’re a candidate, avoid complications, and ensure success.

Sometimes, we may recommend preliminary treatments, such as bone grafting or gum disease treatment to prepare your smile. If so, we’ll detail it in the comprehensive treatment plan you’ll receive before you leave our office.

Dental Implant Surgery

Next comes the placement of your dental implants. Because we perform this minor oral surgery right here at My Riverdale Dentist, you won’t need to go to an unfamiliar outside specialist. Instead, you’ll see friendly faces you can trust throughout your treatment.

After numbing the area and, if needed, providing sedation, we insert the implant posts into your jawbone at precise angles and depths. Thanks to the anesthetic, you won’t feel anything other than pressure from the instruments.

Once your implants are placed, you’ll be given detailed aftercare instructions to manage any soreness and protect the implant sites while they begin to heal. 

Dental Implant Osseointegration & Abutment Placement

Over the next several months, a process called osseointegration occurs within the implant sites. During this time, your jawbone fuses with the titanium fixtures, creating a stable foundation similar to natural tooth roots.

We’ll schedule periodic checkups to monitor your progress and answer any questions you may have about your timeline or treatment in general. Once healing is complete, we’ll attach small connector pieces called abutments to the tops of the implants. These abutments will eventually hold your crown, bridge, or denture in place.

Delivery of Dental Implant Restorations

The final step is attaching your custom restoration. Using precise impressions and digital scans, we have a local partnered dental lab design customized prosthetics that match your natural teeth in color, shape, and size. When your restoration is ready, we secure it to the abutments and make any final adjustments to your bite.

You’ll leave our Riverdale Park office with teeth that look, feel, and perform just like the real thing. With proper care and regular checkups, your dental implants can last for decades—if not a lifetime!

Are Dental Implants Right for Me?

The only way to know whether dental implants are right for you or not is to meet with a member of our team for a scheduled consultation. Most individuals who suffer from tooth loss can be candidates for treatment; however, not everyone can move forward with these prosthetics right away. Additional services may be necessary to ensure the health and stability of your existing smile and jawbone, which is why a thorough examination of your teeth, gums, and bone, as well as a discussion about your overall health, is required.

When meeting with someone from our Riverdale Park office, we will go over how dental implants work based on the number of teeth you are missing. This will help you decide whether you wish to proceed with this type of tooth replacement.

Missing Single Tooth

A fixed bridge can replace a single missing tooth; however, it requires altering healthy abutment teeth on either side of the gap for it to remain in place. Instead of relying on these “anchors” to secure your new teeth, we can install a single titanium post into your jawbone and top it with a metal abutment and customized dental crown for a fully restored smile.

Missing Multiple Teeth

Replacing multiple missing teeth may have you thinking about whether to choose a fixed bridge or partial denture, but if you want something with more stability, opt for a restoration that’s held in place by dental implants. We can position two titanium posts into the exterior spaces before attaching a custom implant bridge or partial, effectively filling in the gap and making it easier to eat and speak.

Missing All Teeth

Dentures might be the first thing you think of when learning you need to replace an entire row of teeth; however, relying on natural suction and messy adhesive doesn’t have to be the answer. Instead, we can place between four and six dental implant posts along the arch to deliver maximum support to the newly crafted denture that we will attach. Not only does this create a complete and more confident appearance, but it also allows you to experience daily life with a set of teeth that look natural, feel comfortable, and work just like your regular ones.

Understanding the Cost of Dental Implants

The dental implant process requires patience, commitment, and financial investment. It’s no secret that these prosthetics are costlier than dentures and dental bridges; however, they are also more cost-effective in the long run. Attempting to determine the cost of your dental implants ahead of time is impossible without a thorough consultation. Once we meet with you to go over the details of your treatment, we can begin to build your cost estimate so that there are no surprises along the way. Before the end of your visit, you’ll understand how much you can expect to pay out of pocket, how much your insurance will cover, and whether you’ll need additional financial assistance to help lower your expenses.