A dental implant is a substitute for a natural tooth and is usually cylindrical or screw-shaped. It is inserted into a socket drilled in the exact location for the intended tooth. The aim with any dental implant is to ensure close contact with the surrounding bone. The stability that this creates is increased as time passes by further growth of the bone around the implant.

Most dental implants these days are titanium or titanium alloy as these materials have proven to be highly tolerated by bone. You may have heard of the phrases ‘osseointegrated implants’ or ‘endosseous implants’; these describe dental implants that support replacement teeth effectively by forming a firm union with bone.

Dental implants are an excellent option for patients who require replacement teeth. At our practice in Cheltenham, we have been expertly fitting dental implants for years.

If a patient is missing a single tooth, one implant will usually be enough. When two or more teeth are missing, the patient may not require one implant per tooth – it will depend on the bone quality and volume at the site of the planned implants.

Sometimes dentists can join natural teeth to implants just by using a conventional bridge.

If a patient possesses no teeth whatsoever in their upper jaw, most dental implant specialists will want to fit at least six implants to support a whole arch of ten replacement teeth or more.

In the lower jaw, the bone density is often stronger than in the upper jaw, and so fewer implants tend to be required. A treatment plan to place ten or more teeth in the lower jaw will usually require just five or six dental implants, and sometimes even as few as four.

Bridges, dentures and most other forms of tooth replacement can also be substituted with dental implants.

Dental implants are suitable for almost anyone who is in good health generally, although there are certain lifestyle choices, such as drinking alcohol and smoking, that can negatively impact the long-term health of the gum and bone around a patient’s dental implant.

In some instances, if a patient cannot reduce their smoking or give up altogether, dentists may decline to give a patient dental implants.

We are highly experienced dental implant specialists in Cheltenham, so feel free to speak with us if you have any other complicated medical problems. In the vast majority of cases, health problems should not prevent the use of dental implants.

In our experience of fitting dental implants at our Cheltenham clinic, we find that treatment times tend to vary between six weeks and six months in most routine cases. The time may be reduced if high-quality bone is available; on the other hand, treatment times may extend beyond six months if bone quality is poor, due to the extra care and attention that is required.

It is completely natural to experience some anxiety ahead of dental implant surgery. The good news is that there are several effective means by which you can achieve a relaxed state, and as Cheltenham’s dental sedation centre, we are highly experienced in delivering such methods. The most common methods available are inhalation sedation, oral sedation and conscious sedation.

The duration of your dental implants will depend on the quality of care at each stage of treatment – starting from the day they are fitted and continuing with your own home care for your implants. The biggest influencing factor will be your willingness to attend our practice in Cheltenham for regular maintenance reviews of your dental implants.

If you fail to care for your implants, a layer of calculus and plaque deposits will form. Much like those found on neglected natural teeth, these deposits will lead to infection of the gums followed by bleeding and pain if left untreated.

On the other hand, if you are proactive in maintaining your dental implants, you should find that they last many years, and possibly even the rest of your life. Having said that, you should anticipate your implants requiring the same sort of maintenance requirements that would come with other forms of dental treatment such as fillings, bridges and crowns.

To ascertain whether you are suitable for dental implants, our dentists at our practice in Cheltenham would ask you in-depth questions about your medical history. We would also perform a thorough oral examination to establish any existing problems, and we may need to take X-rays of your remaining teeth.

A key part of any dental treatment is to ensure that good standards of basic dental health are in place, so we would make you aware of any pertinent issues at this first appointment. We would also explain what treatment you require to stabilise any problems with your gums or teeth, and we would talk you through the implant treatment that you would undergo should you decide to proceed.

We can often determine the answer to this question via standard dental X-rays as it is generally possible to judge the height of bone available for dental implant placement. Sometimes, however, we need to utilise more advanced imaging techniques to ascertain the bone width, which is just as essential to implant installations.

Numerous advanced X-ray techniques are now available which can allow dentists to examine your jaw bone in three dimensions rather than the two dimensions achieved through routine X-rays. CT scanning is the technique most widely used these days, and this will normally show dentists everything they need to know about your suitability for implants, such as quantity and quality of bone and the presence of any anatomical structures that must be avoided.

If your teeth are being replaced by implants and it happens to be in a part of your mouth that is highly visible, chances are that you will want some teeth to be present whilst the treatment is underway.

This can be achieved in a variety of ways such as removable bridges or plastic dentures. If you are going to wear replacement teeth during the course of your treatment, we need to ensure that the teeth do not apply excessive pressure to the implants. Once the implants are in place and before they are brought into function, we would therefore expect you to make several visits to our practice in Cheltenham for any minor adjustments that are required to the temporary teeth.

Most patients will be able to clean around each supporting implant by brushing and flossing in the usual manner. Sometimes it may be necessary to use special floss, interdental toothbrushes or other specialist cleaning aids, but generally you should find that cleaning your implants is not tricky at all.

When a patient’s dental implants are first fitted, we usually like to examine them a few times over the first few months, but once we are happy that your treatment is going to plan, your ongoing care will be no different to when you just had natural teeth.