Sheen Dental implants Richmond are a very substantial piece of work and if you’re considering investing in your own dental health, one of the most important characteristics is how long are they likely to last? All dental treatments have their own lifespan, whether that’s the 3 to 5-years of your standard fillings or 5 to 10 for crowns. Any restoration is expected to eventually wear out under the hard labour of eating and talking that your teeth have to go through every day.
Material dependent
The lifespan of most of these restorations are dependent on the mentions used and the skill of the dentist, not all of which have gone in the direction of a more robust or hard-wearing. For instance, the metal amalgam has been mostly made obsolete by resin composite fillings. Metal amalgam can have a longer lifespan but has other limitations, like thermal expansion and its appearance, not to mention its unfortunate habit of allowing cavities to form around and underneath them. Overall, this has made them redundant compared to a treatment with a slightly lower lifespan but a significantly lower cost and other benefits.
Oral implants use a mixture of materials, titanium for the lower section and a porcelain composite cap usually with a steel or titanium core.
Two part implants
Implants come in two sections; one inserted into the jawbone, acting as a foundation. The other protrudes into the mouth-the oral prostatic. whether it be a single crown or a larger denture.
For the purpose of longevity, it is best to look at them as separate entities. Holding the two together is a connector that can be detached by your dentist, allowing the oral prosthetic to be exchanged without disturbing the implant beneath it.
The crown or other prosthetic are expected to last around 15 years and when it is replaced, it is usually due to wear damage on the biting surfaces. Its lifespan is affected by where it is in the mouth too, with front implants lasting longer than molars with their higher wear and tear. The subgum titanium artificial root is considered to be lifelong, assuming it is safely integrated after the first 12-month as it is likely to never require replacement or maintenance.
Immobilised dentures/bridges
Immobilise dentures and bridges have a similar lifespan to crowns but as they are larger or more prone to damage from trauma, they may require replacing more often. They do have higher maintenance requirements. Careful brushing needs to be carried out to make sure food debris does not become trapped between the prosthetic and the gum where it can induce gum disease.
Osseointegration
Integration with the critical stage in the implantation process; this is where the titanium component becomes permanently fused into the jawbone. During this stage general lifestyle choices, oral health and other medical conditions (particularly if they affect bone growth) can result in failure or loss of the implant.
After this critical stage, implants become very robust with only the most significant trauma or highly advanced gum disease likely to result in them requiring extraction.
