Any of us can lose a tooth, for a variety of reasons, it can be an accident or a dental disease. It’s very important to replace missing teeth for many reasons. First of all losing teeth can lead to changes in your speech, which can also affect your self-confidence. If the gap is left there for long enough, the neighboring teeth can start to migrate from their proper positions, creating misalignment of the teeth, change your bite, which can in turn lead to gum disease, and bite problems and headaches. When teeth are lost for a long time, the area of the jawbone that held those teeth starts to erode. Over time, you can lose so much bone that your jaw will need a bone graft to build up the bone in your jaw before your dentist can place implants or make a denture that fits properly. Tooth loss affects how well you chew and what food you are able to eat. Many people who have missing teeth have poor nutrition, which can affect overall health
Not long ago, people who lost teeth as they aged had only a couple of choices when it came to replacing them: dentures or bridges, in any of several variations. Today, there’s a third option - a dental implant. The dental implant is a small screw made of titanium that is well tolerated by the body and takes the function of tooth root. It is inserted directly onto the bone of the jaw, which subsequently grows onto the surface to anchor it firmly. Under normal conditions, the healing process can take as little as 6 weeks. After this period, the tooth replacement in the form of a crown, bridge or denture is secured to the implant.
Dr. Valdas Labanauskas from Medical Travel thinks that dental implants are the best choice to replace missing tooth or several teeth because:
Feel - Because implants are imbedded in your bone, they feel more like your natural teeth than bridges or dentures.
Convenience - You will not need to worry about denture adhesives or having your dentures slip, click or fall out when you speak.
Nutrition - You will be able to chew better with implants. Chewing can be difficult with regular dentures, especially the ones that don’t fit perfectly. A regular upper denture also covers your palate, which can reduce your sense of taste.
Self-esteem - Because implants are so much like your natural teeth, you will think about them less. Your self-esteem and confidence will be improved because you will not have to worry about denture problems or people noticing that you have missing teeth. Regular dentures can also affect your speech, which can make you less self-confident when talking to others.
Unfortunately, some people may not be good candidates for implants. They include: Young patients whose jawbones have not developed completely. Pregnant women. Heavy smokers - Smoking impedes healing in the mouth and can reduce the likelihood that implants will be successful. Alcohol or substance abusers. Patients who have received high-dose irradiation of their head or neck. People with chronic diseases or systemic problems, including high blood pressure, diabetes, connective-tissue diseases, hemophilia and significant immune deficiencies, among others. You still may be a good candidate for implants even if you have one of these conditions. It depends on the extent and severity of the condition.
Even if an implant isn’t the right choice Dr. Valdas Labanauskas suggests: don’t leave a hole, ask your dentist about other options. You can choose traditional space filling options like dentures or bridges. They too are advanced nowadays, and are worth considering.
No matter what, don’t neglect good dental hygiene routines, and visit your dentist twice a year.

Those of you who will read this summary are of ages 25-70 approximating perhaps 70-80% of our country’s population, and comprising perhaps 40% of the top tier of our people’s intelligence and - remarkably, according to the latest census will constitute 80% of the surviving populace that lives beyond 80 years of age. After all that, what will you have to enjoy? Telecommunication media, travel, social nicities, fine clothes, jewelry, fine cars, housing, and continued sexual assurances, all for contentment. What contentment do you receive from imbibing foods? I mean chewing good foods. Fine foods, baseball games, football games,homemade fine restaurant foods, how about great steaks? You will never do any of this culinary delights with dentures, decaying, decades-old crown and bridge or ancient partial dentures.
As a practicing oral and maxillofacial surgeon for 30 plus years, I have noticed I can assure you that as our societies’attitude and expectations have changed, so has the scope and expectations of oral health care and the available systems of treatment, and the very most successful and long-lived treatment plans have evolved in response to our needs. The orthopedic surgeons development of hip, knee and hand implants has prompted the proper development of dental implants; an entire new world for Dentistry. With proper treatment planning, our patients experience a 97% success rate, with the patient’s age ranging from 18 to 80+ years of age. Yes, I said 80+ years of age! The placement of dental implants is a remarkably benign, kind and temperate oral surgical procedure well tolerated by cardiac, pulmonary compromised and medically managed patients. In fact, we have an upcoming publication with our placement of multiple dental implants in the hemophilia compromised patient.
You will not be disappointed with dental implants. They are not inexpensive, but then nothing is inexpensive that has been shown to be 97% successful for at least 25 years.