Dr. Ravi Singh

What are dental implant? How safe they are? What is the advantage of an implant?

Whenever, there is a missing tooth, earlier the treatment was to replace it with a plastic denture or with a fixed bridge. A denture requires ugly wires to hold it in place and for the bridge process, cutting the neighbouring healthy teeth is required, in order to provide support to it.

Both had limitations with respect to the number of teeth that could be replaced.

A Dental implant is nothing, but a screw made of pure Titanium and is fixed in the jaw bone. They are a 100% safe, provided the surgery is well planned and executed keeping the patient's overall medical health in mind and with specific attention given to the amount of remaining bone in the jaw.

Implants can be used to replace a single tooth or many missing teeth. Even if you have no teeth remaining, implants can be used to support a complete denture, thus making them secure and firm in fit.

The entire procedure is relatively painless as it is done under local anaesthesia and within 3 to 6 months with some additional measurements, your dentist will be able to fabricate custom-made teeth for you that allow you to chew and talk just like before!

Keep in mind that along with regular check up, good maintenance on your part as a patient with good hygiene habits, your implants could last for many years. In our practice we have replaced single teeth, multiple missing teeth and entirely missing sets including those with complete dentures (learn more about Regular Care for Dentures) for patients from the age of 30 to 85! There is no reason for you not to get a satisfactory result with dental implants!

Wisdom teeth are known to be the final molars to grow out and they complete the set of permanent teeth. They generally start to erupt during the late teens or in the beginning of twenties. 

In case of some people, there is a possibility that the wisdom teeth may never erupt, while others may even grow four and more wisdom teeth. 

It’s not necessary for you to get your wisdom teeth removed if they are correctly positioned in your mouth and do not cause any pain or dental problems. If they are impacted and/or cause crowding in your teeth, a dentist will recommend that you have them removed. There are two ways wisdom teeth may grow.

1. Some will grow in like regular teeth.
2. Some will become impacted.

What if they have grown in and don’t hurt?

If this is the case, the decision is up to you. Wisdom teeth that cause minimal crowding and don’t hurt are fine to keep, but a lot of dentists will recommend that they be removed. Why? They are very susceptible to cavities and are not easily cleansable. If your wisdom teeth have cavities and you cannot clean them due to their location, filling the cavities is unwise because you’ll continue to develop more cavities. The easiest way to avoid this problem is to remove the wisdom teeth altogether.

Some reasons that a dentist would recommend wisdom teeth removal include:

1. Irritation of the surrounding tissue or the signs of a cavity forming.
2. Inability to achieve a proper and thorough routine cleaning of food and bacteria.
3. Inadequate space to accommodate full eruption.
4. Signs of impaction that could lead to damage of surrounding roots.
5. Uncomfortable contact with other teeth or gums.
6. Interference of normal jaw function.

When do wisdom teeth need extraction?

Proper oral care of the teeth will keep them healthy and clean. But there may arise a situation, in which the removal of the wisdom teeth is quite necessary:

1. In certain cases, the wisdom tooth may erupt at a weird angle, compromising the teeth next to it. This may make it difficult to clean the teeth thoroughly, thus resulting in the onset of bacterial growth and periodontal disease. In this case, the wisdom teeth should be removed as soon as possible. 
2. While the wisdom teeth grows out, it may happen that there is not enough space for it to grow properly. As a result the adjacent teeth may face pressure due to crowded teeth, leading to headaches, toothaches and jaw pain. It is best that the wisdom teeth is extracted in this situation.
3. An impacted wisdom tooth, that is, if it has only partially grown out of the tissue, should also be extracted before it can cause serious complications. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a dentist.