What Are Dental Implants?
What Are Dental Implants?
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Athena Dental - What exactly is a dental implant?
A dental implant is a titanium post that acts as an artificial tooth root, surgically placed in the jawbone. Over time, it fuses with the bone, providing a strong, stable foundation for a custom restoration like a dental crown. The result is a natural-looking, functional replacement tooth that restores both your smile and bite. Understanding the implant process helps you make an informed, confident decision about your dental health.
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The Importance of Dental Implants
Natural teeth maintain the shape and height of your smile, while allowing you to eat and speak comfortably. When a tooth is lost, surrounding teeth may shift, leading to oral health issues and affecting both function and appearance.
Tooth loss also causes bone resorption, where the jawbone deteriorates due to the lack of stimulation from natural teeth, leading to a sunken look and weakened facial structure.
Dental implants are the closest thing to natural teeth. They preserve jawbone health, maintain facial structure, and restore full function, giving you a confident, healthy smile.
The Benefits of Dental Implants
Tooth loss can affect more than just your smile—it can impact your confidence, comfort, and health. Missing teeth may lead to difficulty eating, shifting teeth, and bone loss. Dental implants provide a long-term solution that looks, feels, and functions like natural teeth.
- Restore Your Natural Appearance: Custom-designed to match your bite and enamel colour, dental implants blend seamlessly with your smile, offering a permanent and aesthetically pleasing solution.
- Enjoy Lasting Comfort & Confidence: Once the jawbone fuses with the titanium implant, it creates a stable foundation for crowns, bridges, or implant-supported dentures. Enjoy a secure, comfortable fit without slipping or shifting.
- Preserve Bone Strength: Implants stimulate bone growth, preventing deterioration and maintaining jaw structure, helping avoid facial sagging.
With proper care, dental implants can last for decades, providing a durable, natural-feeling solution for missing teeth.
Dental Implant Restorations
A dental implant restoration is the custom-made artificial tooth that attaches to the implant, providing a natural-looking and functional solution for missing teeth. While the implant remains hidden beneath the gumline, the restoration mimics the appearance and function of a real tooth.
- Dental Crown: The most common restoration, used to replace a single missing tooth.
- Dental Bridge: Ideal for replacing multiple missing teeth in a row. Supported by one or two implants, a full implant-supported bridge can replace an entire upper or lower arch with four or more implants.
- Implant-Supported Denture: Offers enhanced stability by securely attaching a removable denture to two or more implants, improving both comfort and function.
Each restoration is custom-designed to seamlessly blend with your smile, restoring strength, function, and confidence.
A New Life with Dental Implants Awaits!
Your smile won’t just be restored—it will be better than ever with a dental implant.
Implants are simple to maintain, requiring only regular brushing, flossing, and routine dental checkups. Protecting them from injury, especially during sports, ensures their longevity.
With proper care, your dental implant will provide years of strength, confidence, and a beautiful, natural-looking smile!
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How it feels
While the idea of a metal implant in your jaw may seem intimidating, the procedure is much more comfortable than you might think.
We use a mild anesthetic to ensure you feel no pain during the surgery. Thanks to advanced technology, implant placement is quick, precise, and minimally invasive, resulting in less discomfort and a faster recovery. Many patients even find the procedure relaxing, with the most challenging part being keeping their mouth open for a short time.
After surgery, mild swelling, discomfort, and bruising are normal but easily managed. We provide clear aftercare instructions to help minimize discomfort right away. Most patients feel much better within a week.
With a 95% success rate, dental implants are one of the safest and most predictable treatments in modern dentistry!
What to Expect on Your Dental Implant Journey
The dental implant process is smoother and more comfortable than you might expect. Every step is carefully planned to ensure optimal healing, stability, and long-term success.
Comprehensive Assessment
Your journey starts with a detailed consultation to determine if dental implants are the right solution for you. Using X-rays and a 3D cone-beam CT scan, we assess your jawbone health and ensure you have enough bone to support the implant. A digital scan or impression of your teeth helps us plan the precise placement for maximum stability and function.
Implant Placement
On the day of your procedure, a local anesthetic ensures a pain-free experience. A small incision is made in the gum, and the implant post is carefully inserted into the jawbone. In some cases, sutures may be used, but they heal quickly. The implant integrates with the bone through osseointegration, creating a stable foundation for your new tooth.
Finalizing Your Restoration
After a few months of healing, we attach your custom-made dental crown, bridge, or denture to the implant. This final step restores full function, strength, and aesthetics. You’ll leave with a fully functional, natural-looking tooth, ready to chew, speak, and smile with confidence. With advanced technology and precise planning, dental implants offer a long-lasting solution that supports jawbone health, prevents tooth shifting, and restores the function of your natural teeth.
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to schedule an initial consultation & exam.
Your consultation will include an examination of everything from your teeth, gums and soft tissues to the shape and condition of your bite. Generally, we want to see how your whole mouth looks and functions. Before we plan your treatment we want to know everything about the health and aesthetic of your smile, and most importantly, what you want to achieve so we can help you get there.
Cost of Dental Implants in Richmond
In Richmond, the cost of a single dental implant typically ranges from $3,000 to $4,500+, while full-mouth reconstruction can vary from $6,000 to $60,000 or more. Implant-supported dentures generally cost around $30,000. However, due to the personalized nature of the implant process, no dental practice can provide an exact quote over the phone.
What Determines the Cost of Dental Implants?
- Number and Type of Implants: Whether you need a single implant, a bridge, or a full-mouth restoration.
- Materials Used: High-quality titanium implants and custom restorations ensure durability and a natural look.
- Expertise and Time of the Dental Team: Precision placement by experienced professionals ensures long-term success.
- Complexity of the Surgery: Additional procedures like bone grafting, extractions, or sinus lifts may be needed for optimal results.
- Post-Surgical Care and Recovery: Comprehensive follow-up care is included to support healing and implant integration.
Every patient’s needs are unique, which is why an in-person consultation and oral exam are essential for an accurate assessment. Our team will evaluate your case and discuss customized treatment options to help you achieve a healthy, fully restored smile. Contact us today to schedule your consultation and receive a personalized quote for dental implants in Vancouver.
Frequently Asked Questions
No one will be able to tell! The implant itself is a small titanium post hidden beneath your gums, while the restoration (crown, bridge, or denture) is custom-designed to blend seamlessly with your natural teeth, ensuring a lifelike appearance.
Dentures and implants serve different purposes. Dentures rest on the gums and may shift, while implants are securely anchored in the jawbone, providing superior strength, stability, and long-term oral health benefits. The best choice depends on your specific needs, and a consultation will help determine the right solution.
Candidates for dental implants should have good oral health and sufficient jawbone density to support the implant. Healthy gums are also essential for long-term success. A consultation will assess your suitability and explore options to improve oral health before implant placement.
Absolutely! Implant restorations are custom-crafted to match the size, shape, and colour of your natural teeth, ensuring a flawless, natural-looking smile.
The procedure is minimally invasive and virtually painless. Advanced techniques and local anesthesia ensure comfort, with post-surgical discomfort being mild and easily managed. Swelling and bleeding are minimal, making recovery smooth. If you experience dental anxiety, let us know—we prioritize your comfort.
Most patients can return to work the next day. However, more complex cases may require additional downtime. Your dentist will provide personalized guidance based on your procedure.
Implants should be cared for like natural teeth—regular brushing, flossing, and professional cleanings are key. Routine checkups help ensure long-term success.
