Dental implants are quickly rising in popularity because they are the only treatment for missing teeth that are directly fused to your jawbone like a natural tooth. In order to achieve results that are this good, it is only natural that your jawbone needs to be healthy and strong enough to support your implants. Unfortunately, the fact that your jawbone can deteriorate due to a missing tooth can complicate your dental implant procedure. Today, Dr. Anthony Dailley is blogging from Berkeley, CA to talk about jawbone deterioration, its effects on your body, and what can be done to reverse the damage done by it.
Defend Your Oral Well-being Using Dental Implants
What many people don’t seem to understand about the jawbone is that it is much like a muscle in the way that it requires constant exercise to stay healthy and strong. This exercise comes naturally every time we chew. The impact of the food we eat on our teeth creates vibrations that travel down our tooth roots and into the jawbone. When a tooth is lost, a vital source of that much needed exercise is also lost. As a result, the area of the jawbone that tooth was attached to will begin to deteriorate. This comes with many potential problems that can drastically lower your quality of life.
There are actually many cosmetic issues that can arise due to jawbone deterioration. This is primarily because our teeth and jawbone are largely responsible for our overall facial structure. Patients suffering from jawbone deterioration tend to have a sunken appearance due to their cheekbones appearing hollow and sickly. It is also normal for the skin around your jawline to wrinkle due to jawbone deterioration. Because of this, patients suffering from this condition tend to be described as appearing aged and inhealthy.
If you are currently suffering from jawbone deterioration, it is still possible for you to use dental implants for your restoration treatment. For these patients, bone grafting can be performed to restore your jawbone back to a point where it can support dental implants. Bone grafting is a procedure where bone samples are taken from another part of the body, usually the hipbone, and grafted to the deficient areas of the jawbone. If you are uncomfortable using your own bone tissue for this procedure, it is also possible to use synthetic or heavily sterilized animal bone instead.
Call and Schedule a Consultation with Dr. Anthony Dailley
Because of jawbone deterioration, we recommend that our patients suffering from missing teeth pursue treatment with dental implants as soon as possible. If we can begin the process before jawbone deterioration has time to begin, we can replace your missing tooth before enough damage is done to require bone grafting. If you would like to learn more about the dental implant process or bone grafting, we encourage you to contact us and schedule a no-obligation consultation with dental implant provider Dr. Anthony Dailley today. We look forward to helping you restore your smile soon!