There are an infinite number of ways in which you can lose a tooth. We’re talking adult teeth not milk teeth. It’s not just poor oral hygiene to blame! Thanks to advances in modern dentistry, at our dental clinic in Loughton, dental implants are filling the gap left by a whole host of accidents, incidents and mistakes.

Traditionally, a gap left by an unhealthy or damaged tooth would be resolved by fitting dentures, flexible dentures or a bridge, all of which can be done in our practice in Loughton. Dental implants are small metal screws that are fixed into the jawbone. Once in position, bridges, crowns and dentures can then be fitted to them creating a stronger and durable solution.

Can anyone have dental implants?

Dental implants can be amazing but may not be the right solution for you.  The key thing is that you are in good health. Health issues such as cancer, diabetes or gum disease can affect the success of the dental implants. Loughton patients must not have had previous treatment with bisphosphonate medication. Of course a commitment to good oral hygiene is key as is a willingness to attend the dental implant appointments that may take from four to twelve months.

To find out if they are right for you, get in touch with our team at Broadway Dental Clinic in Loughton. Dental implant patients are invited to come to the clinic for an initial consultation.

What happens if I want implants?

If you are eligible for dental implants, a treatment plan will be developed by our dental implant team in Loughton. You will then be fully briefed on each step of your treatment. We like to ensure that all our patients are fully informed and confident before they start their dental implant treatment.Throughout the process we keep you updated and provide clear advice on how to look after your implants once you have completed the treatment.

For many patients it is the aesthetic impact on their smile that motivates them to have to have treatment for a gap. But what if a gap is not visible when you smile? Well, even then it can cause problems. A missing tooth weakens the way you chew and can lead to the crowding or loss of other teeth. Our advice? Mind the gap!

When you choose dental implants to replace your missing teeth, you choose so much more than an aesthetically appealing smile. At Broadway Dental in Loughton we believe that in most situations dental implants are the ideal solution to tooth loss. They are the only permanent way a dentist can replace those teeth, restoring both natural appearance and function.

Here at our Loughton dental practice, we can use dental implants to replace as many teeth as necessary. They can be used in conjunction with a single crown, a denture, or a dental bridge to create a long-term tooth replacement, which keeps your jaw bone strong and healthy as well as keeping your teeth firmly in your mouth.

The jaw bone starts to resorb when the tooth roots are missing, which is the main cause of loose dentures. Because dental implants are artificial tooth roots that are made from titanium – which is osteoconductive, meaning that new bone material and blood vessels with grow readily around the implants – they are the best way to prevent the problems loose dentures can bring with eating, speaking, and with self-esteem.

Even if you have already experienced some bone loss – perhaps you are struggling with badly-fitting dentures as you read this – the implant team at Broadway Dental in Loughton can help. It is often possible to rebuild the level of jaw bone density prior to placing your dental implants, with either a sinus lift or a bone graft.

If you do require an additional bone grafting procedure, your Loughton dentist will discuss your options during your implant consultation. At this dental implants consultation, your dentist will use CT scans to assess the current level of bone density. They will determine how many dental implants you will need – which will depend on how many teeth we need to replace – and will talk you through all the stages of your treatment.

The majority of patients at our Loughton dental practice only need local anaesthetic for the placement of dental implants. Once the implants are in position they will start to integrate with the bone, and after this integration is complete your permanent new teeth will be attached.

Dental implants provide more than just tooth replacement; they give you a second chance at a mouth full of healthy, functional, adult teeth. Broadway Dental Clinic in Loughton offers a wide range of implant-based treatments, which are designed to provide a permanent solution to losing one, some, or all of your natural teeth.

Loughton dental implants: how it works

A dental implant is best thought of as a bionic tooth root. Made out of titanium (which is used because it supports the growth of new bone material and blood vessels) dental implants are placed directly in your jaw bone during minor dental surgery, which the majority of patients at our Loughton practice only need local anaesthetic for, because of the advanced and intricate planning that your dentist will undertake prior to surgery.

As soon as they are in position, your dental implants start to mesh with your jaw bone in a process called osseointegration. This take an average of six months to complete, during which you may have temporary teeth fitted or, if you currently wear a full denture, you will be able to continue wearing it following adjustment.

After healing and integration are complete, your Loughton dentist will attach either a single crown, a bridge, or a denture on to your implants. This will keep your jaw bone healthy and strong, will provide all the action of a second set of natural adult teeth, and will look beautiful and realistic to boot.

Unlike standard dentures, there is no danger of your implant-retained teeth becoming loose. This means you can eat what you like, speak, smile, and socialise with confidence.

Dental implants and the teeth attached to them are so much like natural teeth that they can attract a build-up of plaque if you don’t take care of them. You need to brush your new teeth at least twice a day, being careful to clean around your implants as instructed by your hygienist, and to visit your Loughton dentist for regular maintenance appointments.

As long as you care for them properly your implants and new teeth will last you for many years – even for life, in some cases.

Dental implants are the only permanent method of replacing missing teeth. At Broadway Dental in Loughton we can use implants combined with crowns, a dental bridge, or dentures to replace anything from one to all of your natural teeth.

At our Loughton clinic we believe dental implants to be the best long-term solution to tooth loss. They replace the roots of the teeth – indeed, they are the only way a dentist can do this – and as well as keeping your new teeth securely in your jaw bone, they also help to keep your jaw bone dense, strong and healthy.

A shrinking jaw bone causes traditional dentures to become loose – which, if you suffer from this problem, you will already know causes a wide range of problems, including:

• Dietary issues by restricting what you can eat
• Issues with your speech
• Loss of confidence if your teeth begin to slip in public, affecting your social life

At Broadway Dental in Loughton we can solve all of these problems by stabilising your dentures with dental implants. This involves placing a series of implants (usually between four and eight per jaw) and leaving them to heal for a few months, after which your dentist will attach a permanent new set of dentures on top. You can usually continue to wear your old dentures during the healing process, after you have adjusted them.

If you have worn standard dentures for a number of years, you may have already experienced some loss of bone density, meaning that your lower or upper jaw will need to be rebuilt to adequate levels to support dental implants. Should we find this to be the case following a CT scan, your dentist will discuss your treatment options.

At our Loughton clinic we offer bone grafts for the lower jaw and sinus lifts for the upper jaw. Both of these procedures will enable you to enjoy all the benefits of dental implants once the bone graft material has healed.

For single tooth replacement, such as after an accident, we will place one implant and attach one crown. Multiple teeth can be replaced with a series of dental implants and a bridge.

Dental implants are an increasingly common method of replacing missing natural teeth. At Broadway Dental Clinic in Loughton we offer implant-based treatment to patients who have lost anything from one to all of their natural teeth, including options to stabilise loose dentures.

Here at our Loughton dental clinic, we believe that dental implants are an investment in your smile, your oral health, and your future. However, we do realise that choosing to have oral surgery is a big decision, and you are likely to have some questions before you sign up for treatment.

We have gathered some common questions and answers about dental implants below. If your question isn’t answered here, please contact our Loughton dental practice and a member of our implantology team will be happy to help you.

How do dental implants differ from other tooth replacements?

Dental implants are the only way a dentist can replace the root parts of missing teeth. These roots both keep your teeth in position and help to ensure your jaw bone stays healthy and strong. A shrinking jaw bone is the reason behind a lot of problems with traditional dentures, which have a tendency to become loose.

Implants are designed to be a long-term solution to tooth loss that, with proper aftercare and regular maintenance visits to our Loughton practice, will last you for many years.

My dentures fitted once, but now they’re loose. Will dental implants become loose, too?

No, not at all – as long as you take care of them. Dental implants and the teeth attached to them need to be brushed at least twice a day, just like natural teeth, and you need to visit the dentist and hygienist regularly. Implants could last for life; in the unlikely event they do start to feel loose, come to our Loughton clinic immediately, as this could be a sign of periodontal infection, which can be treated if caught early.

What if I’ve already lost some bone density?

Your Loughton implant dentist can still help. Patients lacking in bone density can still have treatment with dental implants – a bone graft or sinus lift may just be needed first.

The benefits of dental implants are far more than just aesthetic. At Broadway Dental Clinic in Loughton we are strong advocates of replacing missing teeth one way or another, ideally very soon after they are lost. Doing otherwise risks both your dental and general health and wellbeing.

More often than not we find that dental implants are the best way to do so. We have a skilled implantology team at our Loughton dental clinic, who can replace anything from one to all of your natural teeth with dental implants. We are even able to help patients who have already experienced some loss of density in the jaw bone – a common side-effect of tooth loss – by performing a bone graft or sinus lift procedure to regenerate bone density to adequate levels to support implants.

In cases where all the teeth in one or both jaws need to be replaced, dental implants are usually a better solution that unsecured dentures. Traditional dentures do nothing to address the problem of bone loss, and it is this that can make them loose, uncomfortable, and unwieldy.

Dental implants are bionic tooth roots made out of titanium, which is osteoconductive (meaning they are supportive of bone growth) and highly compatible with the human body. At our Loughton dental clinic we can place your implants under either local anaesthetic or intravenous conscious sedation, depending on your treatment preferences.

For denture stabilisation – also known as implant overdentures – your Loughton dentist will place the required number of dental implants (usually between four and eight per jaw) and after a period of healing will attach your dentures on top, giving you back all the functionality of natural teeth. You will still be able to take your dentures out to clean them, but otherwise they will stay firmly in your mouth with no danger of slippage.

Your Loughton implant dentist can also place a single dental implant and a crown to replace one missing tooth, and can use a series of implants to support a bridge – containing anything from a few to a full arch of teeth. These new teeth will last for many years.

By using dental implants to stabilise your denture, a dentist can put an end to many of the common problems faced by people with false teeth. At Broadway Dental Clinic in Loughton we offer denture stabilisation as a way of helping denture-wearers to get their quality of life back, free from the restrictions that traditional dentures often impose.

Modern dentures are realistic in terms of both appearance and function, yet still have a propensity to become loose. This can affect several areas of your life: your diet may become limited to soft foods as it gets progressively harder to bite and chew; your speech may alter and it can become difficult to pronounce some words; and your body image and confidence may both take a nose dive if your dentures become so loose that they start to slip or fall out when you smile or laugh.

At our Loughton dental clinic, we have found dental implants beneficial in eliminating all of these problems. A lot of the issues surrounding the changing fit of traditional dentures over time are caused by shrinkage of the jaw bone. This happens when the tooth roots are missing.

Dental implants are bionic tooth roots, which in addition to holding a denture, bridge, or crown firmly in place in your jaw also help to prevent bone loss. They are made out of titanium, which supports bone growth, helping the jaw bone to stay healthy and strong, and meaning that your new teeth will fit comfortably for many years to come.

Loughton dental implants

At Broadway Dental Clinic, Loughton, we are able to offer help to patients who have already experienced some degree of bone loss and are currently struggling with loose dentures. Bone grafting procedures can be used to rebuild the density of the jaw bone prior to implant placement.

Your dental implants will be placed under either local anaesthetic or sedation. The number of implants required varies from patient to patient; your dentist will advise you how many you need during treatment planning. After a healing period, your dentures will then be securely attached to your implants, giving you all the freedom of healthy teeth.