In contemporary society, it might be shocking to know that “69% of adults ages 35 to 44 have lost at least one permanent tooth to an accident, gum disease, a failed root canal or tooth decay.” By the time most adults reach their seventies, 26% have few if any of their original teeth left.
With so many people losing teeth and with our current dip in the economy, many people cannot afford the cost of implants and so go either without their teeth or with the less favorable option of bridges or dentures. Yet dental implants are the most desirable of all teeth-replacement options: they look natural, last virtually forever, do not cause pain, discomfort and bad breath and are permanent. Unlike dentures and bridges, implants do not sit on top of the gums or adhere to adjacent teeth. Instead, your dental implant dentist, Dr. Alan Snodgrass, places them inside the jawbone, making them a natural, long-term replacement for teeth.
Thankfully, there is an alternate solution for those who need implants but cannot afford the cost. With a moderate-term, esthetic provisional, patients would be able to preserve their implant site and have the benefit of a temporary replacement tooth. Using computer-aided design and manufacturing, dentists can digitally create temporary implants for a fraction of the cost of permanent ones. The result, produced by a milling machine, is almost as strong as gold.
What this means is that there is now a predictable and successful stopgap for people who do not want dentures but who cannot afford implants. Call your Vancouver, WA dentist, Dr. Snodgrass at Thurston Oaks Dental for further details on how you can get your grin back.
