Single Tooth Implants

If you have one tooth missing, a single dental implant along with a crown could be the best option for you. Effectively, the implant takes the place of the missing tooth and its root, leaving you with the closest thing you can currently get to a real tooth.

How does it work?

A single tooth implant will fuse with your jawbone, becoming part of the structure of the jaw, which means the artificial root will be fixed in a permanent rock solid foundation. With a bridge, it’s very common for the bone that previously surrounded the teeth to begin to deteriorate over time, causing new problems.

Placing a single tooth implant

The technique for placing the implant is pretty straightforward. A titanium screw is placed into the jawbone where the old tooth root used to be and over a period of two to six months, the implant and the jawbone become bonded or fused together. While this is happening, a temporary tooth can be put in place. Once the implant is anchored, a small incision is made in the gum and a small abutment (attachment for your new crown) is added. Finally, the permanent ceramic crown will be attached to the abutment.

There are different methods of placing dental implants, the above being the most common. Dr Cashel will be happy to advise you as to the best system and course of action and of course, as no two patients are the same, you can be sure of a result tailored exactly to your personal requirements.

Benefits of a single tooth implant

The new implanted tooth will function exactly like your real teeth and with reasonable maintenance, you can expect your implant to last a lifetime. The other major advantage of a single dental implant is that it does not require any of the surrounding teeth to be ground down, which is the case in the other main option open to you, a fixed bridge. This option needs the neighbouring teeth to be used as supports.