Dental implants are used to replace a tooth that is missing or has been extracted. While there are other choices out there, implants are considered to be the best when they are a possibility. Keep reading this article to learn why implants are a better option than dentures or dental bridges. This is something you need to know when you want to make an educated decision. 

What makes dental implants better than dentures or bridges?

Dentures

With dentures, you get a replacement for your missing tooth that closely resembles the look of a real tooth. However, dentures come out, they can be broken, they can prevent you from being able to eat certain foods you may like, and upon closer inspection, it becomes more obvious that they aren't real teeth. They can also make for embarrassing situations sometimes when you laugh or cough and they come out of your mouth in front of people. 

Dental bridges 

A dental bridge is more permanent because a portion of the bridge is a crown that gets securely bonded to one of your teeth that's next to the gap where your missing tooth once was. Dental bridges look and feel better than dentures. However, there are still some drawbacks to them. For one thing, you won't be able to floss between any of the teeth that make up the bridge because they will all be fused together. Also, since a bridge requires a crown to be affixed permanently to a tooth, you may end up having a crown put on a tooth that was perfectly healthy before it had to be shaved down to create room for the crown. 

Dental implants 

Dental implants are so great because they can come as single units, meaning they don't require anything to be done to healthy teeth for you to have them put in. Also, they mimic a real tooth more than any other option. This is done by using hardware that will take the place of roots. It will have a fixture shaped similar to a screw that gets permanently placed into your jaw, like the roots of your teeth. Then, there is the abutment, which attaches to the fixture and the crown. Finally, there is the crown that is made to look just like it were your real tooth. Once it is in place, it is extremely hard for someone to spot it as anything other than a real tooth. Once you are all healed from the procedure, it will be easy to forget you even have a dental implant because it will look real, it will feel real, and it will require exactly the same dental hygiene as your real teeth.

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