Dental Implants
Dental implants are titanium posts that are placed into the jaw bone to help anchor a tooth. Not only will this provide a strong foundation for biting and chewing, but the dental implants will also allow for the replacement of the entire missing tooth. Thanks to years of progress and improved techniques, dental implants will look, feel and function like natural teeth when done properly. Implants avoid many of the undesirable effects of bridges and dentures and are the standard of care to replace missing teeth with many decades of documented clinical use.
At your initial consultation Drs Goldman, Bloom and Lim will assess your suitability for implant placement, inform you about the process, discuss the surgical risks involved in your particular case, discuss costs, health insurance item numbers and arrange for scans.
Placing the implant is a routine procedure performed under local anesthetic, although it can be done using happy gas or sedation upon request. Pain relief is also provided following the procedure.
After a period of healing the permanent tooth is inserted into the implant, so it can look and function like a natural tooth.
When considering surgical procedures such as dental implants, it is advisable to seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified clinician. Drs Goldman, Bloom and Lim are registered specialists in Australia and are happy to provide second opinions for both simple and complex cases.
If two or more teeth are missing in a row, it may be possible to use several implants to replace many teeth. This depends on the available bone and the biting forces the implants will be under. Drs Goldman, Bloom and Lim will assess this at your initial consultation and will confirm it when scans are viewed. Significant financial savings are passed onto the patient when multiple implants are placed.
When you want to replace all of your top teeth or all of your lower teeth, Drs Goldman, Bloom and Lim can do this with as few as four implants. At your consultation we will discuss all of the options and once the scans have been viewed we will confirm the treatment plan. The procedure can be performed under local anesthetic or under sedation.
It may be possible for a temporary tooth or teeth to be attached to the implants the same day they are placed. Drs Goldman, Bloom and Lim will assess if this is possible at your consultation.
To save treatment time, sometimes the implant is placed in the jaw immediately following tooth removal. This may be possible if there is an abundance of bone and no significant infection. The advantage of this is it can save weeks in treatment time, reduce the number of procedures required and reduce the total cost. At your initial consultation Drs Goldman, Bloom and Lim will assess your suitability for this.