Damaged Tooth? Decayed Tooth? Top Missing Teeth Replacement Options For You

Dental implants can create strong, natural-looking replacement teeth to help you restore your youthful and beautiful smile. This article explains what dental implants are. It describes the advantages they offer over conventional ways of replacing lost or missing teeth and discusses how to determine if implant dentistry in Mexico is for you.

by Dayo Dental | Updated on 13 September 2022

Our teeth and gums are amazing structures. They have evolved to chew away at our food for year after year, subjecting them to enormous bite loads, while defending us against infection in one of the body’s most nutrient-rich environments. There’s bad news, though. Because our teeth are the result of evolution, they are only really ‘designed’ to last us until we naturally stop reproducing – 50 years, tops. And these days we live many decades longer than that. So unless we have been extremely careful with our teeth throughout our lives, we’re only going to hang on to our them with increasing assistance from the dentist! And for most of us, lost teeth can take a big toll on our health, finances, and overall well-being. So to help you with your biggest dilemma, we’ve listed the top missing teeth replacement options for common dental problems like decayed tooth, broken tooth, and damaged tooth.

The Titanium Breakthrough for Lost Teeth

Although early attempts to implant prosthetic structures in the site of lost teeth had been made (remember those Egyptians?), they had enjoyed limited success, because the materials used had not integrated into the patient’s tissue, increasing the strength of the restoration and sealing the site against infection. In the 1970s, however, an orthopaedic surgeon noticed that when he used Titanium pins and screws to provide temporary fixture for fractured bones, they were far more difficult to remove than similar items made from other alloys and metals. Bone, it seems, loves Titanium posts, and will grow rapidly around it. Dentists call this process integration, or “osseointegration”, and it lies at the heart of the dental implant revolution. Soon, dentists were placing titanium bolts into the site of lost teeth, and mounting an otherwise conventional crown on top. An exciting and lasting alternative to “false teeth” had arrived! Since those early days research and development has led to a staggering variety of implant applications, implant design and surgical procedures.

Single tooth replacements
Multiple tooth replacements
Full jaw permanent dentures

Each of these requires its own unique protocol to replace lost teeth, and we will be discussing these in related blogs. Suffice to say that selecting a clinician for your implant treatment demands great care. Dayo Dental maintains a network of dentists and surgeons in Mexico who are leaders in implant dentistry in Mexico:

Bone loss following tooth loss

Bone is living tissue. Strange though it may seem, it is constantly being regenerated. But, just as children’s bones are strengthened by the knocks they receive playing contact sports, so our jaw bones need the stimulus of chewing and biting to maintain the complex, cup-like bony structure around the teeth. Tooth positions are important and if we lose one of them, the stimulus is lost, and the bone will begin to ‘resorb’. This is why wearers of a full removable denture are forever having them relined – their jaws are literally dropping!

Traditional Solutions to Replace Missing Teeth

Prosthetic means of replacing missing or lost teeth began centuries ago – there’s even evidence that the ancient Egyptians used a form of dental implant, and George Washington famously had wooden false teeth. In modern times, solutions have tended to take the form either of removable dentures or, to replace smaller numbers of teeth, crown-and-bridge. These have a number of disadvantages:

Dentures can be unstable, and need frequent relining to maintain fit as the profile of the gum on which they rest changes.
Bridges rely for support on the continued health of the adjacent teeth. But if the lost tooth failed due to gum disease, as is often the case, it’s highly likely that the adjacent teeth are NOT entirely healthy. If so, the life of the entire structure will be compromised.
Lastly, but most importantly for our discussion, neither of these solutions preserve the bone around the site of the lost tooth.

Tooth Replacement Options for Missing Multiple Teeth

Complete or Partial Denture

A denture is a removable replacement for missing teeth and surrounding tissues. There are two types of dentures – complete and partial.A complete denture is used when all the teeth in either the upper or lower jaw have been lost .A partial denture is used to replace one or more teeth, when some natural teeth still remain in the upper or lower jaw. The denture fills the space created by the missing teeth and prevents other teeth from moving position. The partial denture is held in place by clasps that attach to adjacent natural teeth, or by precision attachments that are virtually invisible.

Implant-Supported Denture

The easiest to clean type of implant replacement option. This is also the least expensive among them all. Unlike conventional dentures, you get more cushioning and support against your jawbone. This will give you a more natural feel, as well as increase your chewing abilities.

All on 4 Dental implants

A type of dental implant, the All-on-4 dental implants is a great solution for patients with missing teeth. This procedure uses only four titanium posts that are implanted in an angled position into the jawbone to provide support for the new permanent prosthesis.

Dental Crowns

Dental crowns are caps that fit over existing teeth. They are used to strengthen a tooth that is cracked, worn down or has been damaged in some other way. Zirconia crowns are made of white ceramic that is used for its strength and durability.

Porcelain Fused to Metal (PFM) Crown

Often recommended for teeth that are severely decayed or broken, PFM crowns are made of metal covered with porcelain. The metal used is usually gold, palladium, or some other type of alloy. The combined strength of the metal and porcelain make for a very durable crown.

Fixed Bridge

An implant replacement option for the missing teeth on the upper or lower jaw. The dentist can install 6 implants per arch to provide a solid base for the new teeth. For quality dental care at fraction of the cost, don’t hesitate to contact Dayo Dental. Dayo Dental partners with the top 5% of leading dentists in Mexico and takes pride in giving the best, most affordable, and highly satisfying dental results.