Implant Restorations
Restoring Your Youthful Smiles in NYC
Once the implant has integrated with jawbone, it is the time to restore your missing teeth with implant crowns. There are many choices on how to restore implants depending upon implant locations, implant angulations, bone and gum conditions, etc.
How is a Crown Connected to Implant?
A porcelain crown can be connected to implants directly or indirectly. If it is a direct connection, the crown is called screw-retained. This is a screw access hole on the chewing surface, which can be sealed with a sealer material after crown insertion. It can be easily removed for repair if needed in the future.
If it is an indirect connection, the crown is called cement-retained. A post-like structure called abutment is screwed onto implant, and the crown is connected to the abutment by dental cement.
Implant Bridge
When two or more contiguous teeth are missing, two or more implants are needed to restore the missing teeth. To restore two or more contiguous implants, implant bridge is used.
When all teeth are missing, a full house implant bridge can be supported by 6-8 implants in an arch.
When there is severe bone loss and gum damage, a pink gum colored material can be added to the full house implant bridge to mimic the lost gum.
Restoring missing teeth with fixed implant crowns or bridges is always preferred. It restores the chewing function, esthetics, phonetics and self confidence. However, this choice may not be feasible for some patients. Please refer to implant-retained overdenture for removable restorations.