Whenever possible, we recommend that you replace a lower denture with a lower jaw implant that will give you a better chewing surface and a more cosmetically appealing smile.
If you have purchased a lower denture, you already know how uncomfortable eating can be. When you lose lower teeth, your jaw bone actually begins to recede. Nerves that pass through the jaw can then rise to the surface of the bone. This will result in severe pain when you bite down.
However, you do not have to rely upon partial dentures to remedy this situation. Missing teeth in the lower jaw can be replaced with dental implants. These amazing tooth replacements are cylinders made from a bio-friendly Titanium alloy known as Tivolloy. This portion functions as an artificial tooth root and provides a base for a porcelain crown to act as the actual tooth replacement.
If a person is missing several teeth and cannot afford to replace all of them with implantation, a combination of implants and dentures can be used. One way to use implants on the lower jaw is to connect the implants with a bar and then put clips into a new lower denture. When these clips snap down on the bard, they prevent the denture from rocking back and forth and shifting. You can still remove the denture for cleaning, and to have better access to cleaning both the lower jaw implant and the bar.
Dentures are never the most advanced option, however. If you can invest a little more, another option may be a lower bridge. Lower jaw bridges can be cemented in place or held in position by screws.
In either scenario, the use of dental implants to give support to a lower denture or a lower bridge keeps the pressure off of bones and nerves. Even better, they give the jawbone something similar to natural tooth roots around which to grow. This stops bone loss in its tracks.
Lower jaw implants are placed in your mouth in a two-phase process. The first phase is the surgical phase. Patients are sedated during this phase to prevent them from feeling pain. The dentist makes a small incision in the gums and screws the titanium base into the jaw bone. Over the next few months the jaw bone grows around this base, thinking it is a new tooth root.
When the healing process completes itself, the dentist then fashions a porcelain crown made to match surrounding, natural teeth. This is the part of the implant you will chew with, and that other people will see. We use porcelain for two reasons. One, it is extremely hard and provides the most reliable and durable chewing surface. Two, its color is remarkably similar to that of tooth enamel.
When the crown is ready, it is placed over the lower jaw implant root. Its ultimate success will depend on the care you give yourself at home and regular checkups and cleanings.
Lower jaw implants can restore your confidence when you smile, and can let you eat and talk like you never lost a tooth in your life.
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