Dental Implants

Dental implants can be life changing. They are one of the greatest advancements in dental care, and Dr. Jergins is an experienced professional in creating wonderful results using dental implants.

If you are looking for a dental implant dentist in Spring Hill, Florida, look no further than The Gentle Dentist.

Call our office today to schedule an appointment with Dr. Jergins to discuss how dental implants can change your life!

 

Dr. Jergins says:

I’m often asked, “Given the choice between a bridge or an implant, which would you choose for yourself?”  I can answer this without hesitation:  The implant, of course.

 

Why?  There are many reasons.

 

First, bridges typically have to be replaced over and over throughout a person’s lifetime, while an implant can be expected to last far longer – possibly a lifetime.  This is because a bridge is much harder to keep clean.  Imagine you have replaced a single, missing tooth with a bridge. The bridge works by connecting the artificial replacement tooth to the natural teeth on either side of the space.  The bridge is one solid piece. There is a very small amount of space beneath the artificial tooth in a bridge.  To maintain hygiene in this area, you have to use a “floss threader” (the sewing needle) to pull floss (the thread) through.  I know there are some of you out there who are adept at this.  But for most people, it is very difficult.  And if you don’t think flossing is fun, your enjoyment level of this activity would be very low!  Poor hygiene under the pontic results in plaque accumulation where the artificial tooth and the natural teeth meet, and this is the site that usually develops decay.

 

Second, bridges place more force on the natural teeth, while implants provide natural balance.  It’s the old “elephant in stilettos” example from physics class.  Imagine an elephant in high heels.  Normally its weight is distributed over a large foot area.  But when all that weight is on four thin heels, the area beneath those heels will endure much more weight per area than if the elephant were standing on its natural feet.  The same happens with a bridge (although, obviously, with less force than in the elephant example).  In the case of a three-tooth bridge, with one artificial tooth in the middle supported by two natural teeth, there is the same force on two teeth that used to be on three teeth.  You can do the math from there, and vary it depending on how many teeth are involved.

 

Third, bridges necessitate the removal of sound natural teeth; implants do not.  In order to secure the bridge to the teeth, there needs to be room for the bridge to fit.  So, natural tooth structure has to be removed from all sides of a tooth in a bridge.  This is true even if the supporting teeth have never had decay.  If a tooth has already had a large amount of decay, or has a big filling, as a dentist I don’t mind the bridge as much.  If it has never had a filling on the other hand, I cringe to remove tooth structure, even if it’s to support a modified bridge, which may not cover the full tooth surface.

 

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not against bridges, and in the right situation, and with proper home care, they can function for several years without event.  It’s just that, if you want to know what I’d like in my own mouth, as someone who understands what is actually happening when I select a restoration, my honest answer is an implant.