Dental Implants Specialist

What are dental implants?

Dental implants are titanium rods that go into your jawbone like screws. They’re made to replace the natural roots of missing teeth and act as anchors for prostheses like crowns, bridges, or overdentures. 

The roots of your teeth secure them in the jawbone, and they maintain your jawbone’s structure. Losing a tooth and its root can lead to bone loss within the jaw, so getting an implant to replace it is both a preventive and a restorative procedure.

Restorations attached to dental implants look and function almost identically to your natural teeth. Dr. Gaitan creates custom restorations that look very similar in shape, color, and size to your original teeth. 

Implants have a high treatment success rate. They never develop decay and never require root canals. As the most advanced tooth replacement system available, dental implants are a fantastic option for tooth replacement at any age.

How does dental implant placement work?

An implant surgeon strategically plans the implant placement using advanced digital X-rays and an intraoral scanner. Then, depending on the X-rays’ findings, they might recommend a bone graft to make up for any loss of bone density that might occur after the tooth’s root leaves its place.

The dental implant placement process involves three key steps after the planning phase:

Step one

The surgeon makes an incision and gently folds back the gum tissue from the surface of your jawbone. 

Step two

The surgeon secures the screw-like dental implant anchor in the exposed jawbone. 

Step three

The surgeon places a temporary cap on the dental implant before re-securing the gum tissue over the bone. For several months, the bone fuses with the implant.

What is dental implant restoration?

Dental implant restoration is the part of the process involving the attachment of a restorative device, like a crown, bridge, or denture, to the sturdy dental implant. Like the placement process, dental implant restoration involves three steps:

Step one

Dr. Gaitan removes the temporary cap from the dental implant, which is now sturdy due to a process called osseointegration. He then attaches a post called an abutment to the dental implant.

Step two

Dr. Gaitan takes impressions of the gap with the abutment. He uses these impressions to design a crown, bridge, or overdenture that will fit over it perfectly. 

Step three

With the prosthesis ready, Dr. Gaitan can secure it to the implant abutment.

To determine if you’re a candidate and start planning your treatment with dental implants, call Ricardo M. Gaitan, DDS, or book an appointment online today.