Dental Implants Help to Keep Your Jaw Bone Strong and Healthy
Posted on 1/24/2022 by Greater Charlotte Oral and Facial Surgery
To keep your jaw bone optimally healthy, you need to place implants after an extraction. Doing so will give the jaw stimulation so it will not lose volume and density.
Why Adding Implants Is Good for Jaw Health
When you have a tooth extracted, you also remove the tooth's root. The root of the tooth is necessary to stimulate the gum and jaw while chewing and promoting cell regeneration and growth. However, if nothing is used to replace the tooth and root, the socket will remodel itself and the bone will deteriorate. When this occurs, you usually need to have a bone graft performed so you can place an implant. The grafting will give the bone volume after an extraction. You can also have grafting material put into a socket at the time of an extraction to maintain bone health and density.
What Is a Dental Implant?
A dental implant is a titanium post that serves as an artificial root. When you have an implant performed, you will need to wait about 6 months for complete healing to occur. After the implant fuses with the jaw bone, you can place a permanent denture, bridge, or crown at the implant site. Adding the implant replicates the function of a natural tooth's root and prevents a patient from losing further bone.
Preventing and Checking for Jawbone Loss
If you have periodontal disease, you can prevent jaw bone loss by getting a deep cleaning called a scaling and root planing (SRP). The cleaning removes the bacteria and plaque that attack the bone and causes it to deteriorate. As noted, bone grafts can also be performed to increase bone density. Bone loss can cause facial features to shrink, lead to tooth mobility or cause problems with tooth alignment or chewing.
Do you need to address a problem with jawbone loss? If so, we can help. Call us today for an appointment for a consultation.
To keep your jaw bone optimally healthy, you need to place implants after an extraction. Doing so will give the jaw stimulation so it will not lose volume and density.