What are the ways I can replace my Teeth?

Amit was bothered by tooth loss and was very scared, what could be his options to replace the teeth. Will that be painful?
He decided to resolve this query and finally took an appointment for consultation with a dentist.
So here it is, how it went along;
He had a few back teeth missing and one unrestorable front tooth, which he sustained injury previously.
The dentist suggested a few options, which are as follows;

1. Removable Denture-
This is a prosthesis which is removable and can be used to replace all his teeth in one go. He needed 2-4 appointments maximum to get it done. The advantages were reasonable and can replace missing teeth, which was lost due to years of wear. The disadvantages were, he had to remove it and clean after every meal! He had to be careful while cleaning not to drop it or damage it.

2. Bridge:
This was typically two appointment procedure per segment of arch. Pros of this treatment modality was, it was fixed and need not to be removed after every meal. It is to be cleaned as he follows his regular oral home care like brushing and flossing.
Cons were, they had to cut down his adjacent healthy teeth in order to gain support and it was a bit heavier on his pocket with respect to removable denture. But he didn’t mind because he was getting fixed option. Nobody can tell he has false teeth 🙂

3. Implants:
Now this was the third option told to him that they will put artificial root (titanium implant) in his jaw bone and then put tooth on top of it. Pros were his adjacent healthy teeth were saved, they need not to be cut in order to get support as the artificial root placed in his jaw bone will provide the support.
A con of this was minor surgical procedure under local anaesthesia plus additional cost of implant.

But he was extremely happy to know, that he can preserve his natural pristine tooth and get fixed replacement which is completely durable and will last long. So he doesn’t mind undergoing minor surgery for it. So he decided to go on with Dental Implants .
Above story is routine example, we face such cases on a regular basis about the patients who are terrified to visit dentist, even they have problems in eating due to missing teeth.

By
Dr. Shaza Hamid,
MClinDent Prosthodontics, UK
32smiles, Pune
www.32smiles.in