Losing one or more adult teeth can detract from your daily quality of life in several different ways. For example, it’s normal to feel self-conscious about the sudden changes in your appearance. You might also notice changes in your speech patterns or struggle to bite and chew certain foods.
Your dentist can rebuild your smile with dental implants, but you might require a bone graft procedure first. Continue reading to learn why this is sometimes necessary before placing your restorations!
How Does Tooth Loss Impact My Jawbone?
Many patients are surprised to learn that their jawbone starts to thin after adult teeth fall out. Your roots stimulate new bone growth with every bite down, which keeps it active and healthy. Unfortunately, you can lose up to 25% of the surrounding bone mass within the first year of them going missing. This can cause issues like sunken cheeks, additional facial wrinkles, and even further tooth loss.
What are Dental Implants?
Dental implants are the only replacement teeth with a titanium rod surgically embedded in your jaw to function like roots and preserve your jawbone to prevent this degenerative process. They’re capped with a dental crown or other appropriate restoration customized to match any remaining natural teeth for seamless results.
It can take three to six months to recover from the procedure because that’s how long your jaw takes to produce enough new bone growth to fuse with the support pole in a process called osseointegration. This is what gives dental implants the strength and stability they’re known for. Once this stage of recovery is complete, the rod is essentially a permanent part of your smile and can last 25+ years with the proper care.
Why Do I Need a Bone Graft for Dental Implants?
Before you can schedule your surgery, you must consult your provider to ensure you’re a good candidate. They’ll examine your mouth to ensure no pre-existing issues, like cavities or gum disease, interfere with the results.
They’ll also measure your jawbone to determine whether it’s thick enough to support dental implants. Depending on how long it’s been since your teeth were lost, it may already be too frail to serve as a reliable foundation. Without enough density, it’s less likely to complete osseointegration successfully, increasing the likelihood of experiencing failure. Thankfully, in many cases, an additional bone graft procedure can bulk it up enough to proceed with your chosen treatment.
If you’re unsure whether you’ll need a bone graft before getting dental implants, the only way to know for sure is to consult your dentist!
About the Practice
At Ross & Sourlis Family Dentistry of Rock Hill, you and your family benefit from two dentists dedicated to helping you build and maintain happy, healthy smiles. Dr. Coombs and Dr. Ross each have decades of experience providing a complete menu of services to people of all ages at one convenient location. They partner with the best local implant specialists to ensure accurate placement, then combine art with advanced technology to provide lifelike restorations to match your natural grin. You can request an appointment on the website or call (803) 324-5301.