Dental Implants in Hillsborough Township, NJ
About The Doctor:
Dr. Al Internoscia is driven by a passion for improving people’s lives and he uses his extensive training and experience to create beautiful smiles in even the most challenging dental situations. Dr. Al excels at making his patients feel comfortable and goes out of his way to treat everyone like family with his caring, gentle touch.
Dental Implant FAQ
Benefits of Dental Implants
Immediately functioning teeth: It is possible to have dental implants and new, fully functional teeth in just one session.
Preserves facial appearance: When you lose the entire tooth -crown and root - shrinkage of the jawbone may cause your face to look older. Dental implants can stop this process.
Perfect fit - and smile: A new ceramic crown or bridge can be made to fit perfectly in your mouth. It is almost impossible to distinguish a real tooth from a ceramic crown restoration.
Eat what you want: Implant-supported replacement teeth are like natural teeth because they are anchored securely |in your jaw. This allows you to eat your favorite foods in comfort and confidence.
Saves healthy teeth: With traditional practices, two teeth adjacent to a missing tooth must be ground down to anchor a bridge. Dental implants often eliminate the need to modify healthy teeth.
A solution for life: A dental implant and ceramic crown or bridge offers a long-lasting solution, often for life.
Boosted self-esteem: Once you experience the benefits of new and permanent teeth, you may well experience renewed confidence and improved quality of life as well.
Implants vs. General Dentistry
Dental implants allow for the replacement of missing teeth without grinding on good teeth to make bridges. Many conventional dental procedures are still indicated today. However, with the advent of dental implants, many of those procedures are becoming outdated or contraindicated. For decades, the dental profession has advocated the preservation of natural teeth and natural tooth structure. This concept is certainly upheld when using dental implants for tooth replacement. The need for removal of healthy tooth structure (enamel) has been eliminated by dental implant treatment.
Dentists agree that a tooth often begins a downward spiral after being touched by a dental drill for the first time. Patients and practitioners alike have agonized over the decision to grind on healthy teeth. We, as practitioners, see conventional crown and bridgework fail prematurely. Several studies on crowns and bridges found an average 9-10 year life expectancy in the United States. Until about 1985 our choices for tooth replacement were poor, at best. Since implants have become the "standard of care" for tooth replacement our choices have improved dramatically.
The use of dental implants gives three more benefits rarely discussed:
1.) Dental implants strengthen the dentition (entire set of teeth) . By adding a dental implant where a tooth is missing, we are replacing the root and the crown (top) which is missing, thereby potentially increasing the life expectancy of surrounding teeth. In some ways the implant is more solid than the tooth it is replacing. Bridges and partials weaken the dentition by forcing other teeth to carry the burden of the missing ones.
2.) Dental implants preserve the bone levels that are present when a tooth is lost. Without the implant the bone will slowly resorb (melt away) because there is no stimulus to keep it in place.
3.) Dental implants do not decay. By far, the most common reason for a crown or a bridge to fail is because decay starts at the margin where the crown meets the natural tooth. Titanium implants cannot decay.
Below we contrast implant dentistry with more traditional forms of dentistry:
One Missing Tooth
When a person is missing one tooth there are two options for replacement, a single tooth dental implant or a three-unit bridge.
Implant
|
Bridge
|
|
Cost
|
Same as bridge
|
Same as implant
|
Treatment Line
|
3 - 9 months
|
2 - 5 weeks
|
Drill on other teeth
|
No
|
Yes
|
Life expectancy
|
10 - 30 years
|
5 - 15 years
|
Effect on dentition
|
Strengthens
|
Weakens
|
Chance for future decay
|
No
|
Yes
|
Removable partial dentures (RPD) have been used by dental patients to replace missing teeth for over a century. Simply by considering the phrase one can understand why they are really outdated treatment options; removable, by the patient several times per day. Partial denture indicates it is a denture on a smaller scale. Most people would choose to have "fixed" (cemented or screw retained) teeth if given the option. Fixed teeth on dental implants look, feel and function like natural teeth.
Several Missing Teeth
Implant Bridge
|
R.P.D.
|
|
Cost | More than RPD | Less than implant bridge |
Treatment Time | 3 - 9 months | 4 - 12 weeks |
Drillon other teeth | No | Yes |
Life expectancy | 10 - 30 years | 5 - 15 years |
Effect on dentition | Strengthens | Weakens |
Change for Future decay | No | Yes |
Prosthesis stability | Like natural teeth | Moderate |
Ease of cleaning | Moderate | Simple (outside mouth) |
Comfort | Like natural teeth | Poor |
Speech change | None | Improves with time |
Palate covered | No | Yes |
Preserves bone | Yes | No |
Complete dentures have been a nemesis of mankind since they were invented. Though they do replace missing teeth and can be esthetically pleasing, there are few other accolades about dentures. Most dentures wearers admit that they would "do anything" to save their teeth if given the opportunity. Dentures are difficult to adapt to, uncomfortable to wear, painful to chew with and can cause public humiliation. Most denture wearers claim that dentures alter their lifestyle significantly.
Missing All Teeth
Dental Implants
|
Dentures
|
|
Cost | Much more than dentures | Much less than implants |
Appearance | Good | Good |
Treatment Time | 3 - 18 months | 2 - 6 weeks |
Life expectancy | 10 - 30 years | 3 - 10 years |
Effect on chewing | Like healthy natural teeth | Poor |
Prosthesis stability | Like natural teeth | Very poor |
Ease of cleaning | Moderate | Simple (outside mouth) |
Comfort | Like natural teeth | Very poor |
Speech change | Minimal | Improves with time |
Palate covered | No | Yes |
Preserves bone | Yes | No- accelerates bone loss |
Are you interested in Dental Implants?
Call Towne Centre Family Dental in Hillsborough, NJ at
908-874-5101
to learn more!