Replacing Your Missing Tooth with Functional and Life-like Single Dental Implants

According to the American College of Prosthodontists, at least 120 million (over 36%) Americans have lost at least one tooth. If you belong to this group, you can benefit from dental implants at Smiles Studio in Redmond, Washington.

Dental implants are versatile to replace missing teeth anywhere in your mouth. So, whether you want to fix your mouth gap at the front or back, you can trust Dr. Tina Subherwal and the team for functional, beautiful-looking single dental implants. As permanent solutions for tooth loss, dental implants are firmly “rooted” in the jawbone to support your smile for life.

What is a single dental implant?

Losing even one tooth can affect your smile’s health, function, and beauty. Tooth loss diminishes your speaking and eating ability and overall confidence. Furthermore, missing teeth affect the remaining teeth, causing them to shift into the space. 

Dr. Subherwal recommends single dental implants to close the gap when replacing one or two teeth. A single dental implant uses a surgically inserted titanium rod to replace your natural tooth root. We then attach an abutment (connector), which acts as a “saddle” for a custom-made tooth prosthetic (crown). The crown looks natural and fits comfortably, just like the natural tooth.

What to expect from single dental implant treatment

The first step is to book a dental exam with our dental team to establish your eligibility for dental implants. Typically, we examine your jawbone health to determine if it’s dense enough to support an implant. We also scrutinize your oral and overall health to ensure successful dental implant placement.

If you are eligible for dental implants, the other steps involved include.

• Pre-surgery procedures: If your tooth is severely damaged or decayed, we’ll remove it to create space for an implant. Furthermore, if you have severe bone loss, we’ll recommend bone grafting to replenish lost bone tissue.  
• Implant surgery: Your dentist starts by numbing your gums to minimize discomfort. Then, we make a small incision on your gums and drill a small hole in the bone for the implant. Next, we place a titanium stud on the slot and attach a healing cap to act as a protective barrier. Finally, we stitch your gums and leave the implants to heal over the next few months. 
• Healing and fusion: Your implant needs 4-6 months to heal and fuse with the jawbone through osseointegration. During this period, you should observe diligent oral hygiene to prevent implant infection (peri-implantitis), the most common cause of implant failure.
• Abutment placement: This step involves minor surgery to re-open your implant. After removing the healing cap, we attach an abutment that connects the implant to your crown. This procedure needs about two weeks to heal. 
• Crown placement: The final procedure is to restore your tooth with a natural-looking crown. The crown will be the only visible component of the implant as the titanium fixture and abutment remain buried beneath the gums.

Dental implants are the closest thing to your natural teeth. These superior teeth replacements last for life and restore oral function to nearly 100%. Moreover, dental implants halt bone loss and encourage your jawbone to regenerate to maintain your youthful appearance.

Teeth implants near me

Ready to wear a lasting smile with dental implants? If you are in Redmond, WA, and its environs, please call (425) 584-3242 to schedule a consultation with Smiles Studio for high-quality implant-based restorations.