Dental implants are one of the most successful dental procedures available. Success rates are as high as 98%, with most dental implants lasting a lifetime. However, researchers are always looking for new ways to improve the dental implant procedure.
Dental implants can be the most cosmetic tooth replacement available. However, one of the biggest obstacles to getting a cosmetic result is maintaining the gum tissue around the implant. Soft tissue doesn’t always bond well with dental implants.
Now a new nanotechnology innovation could improve the bond between the implant and soft tissue. This will not only improve the appearance of dental implants, it could reduce the risk of infection, which is the leading cause of late dental implant failure.
Nanotechnology to the Rescue
Dental implants are made of titanium because this metal bonds very well to bone. Bone can grow around and even attach to titanium, which creates a solid anchor for the replacement tooth.
However, titanium doesn’t always bond well to soft tissue (gums). This can lead to receding gums as well as bone loss around the dental implant, which can expose the implant and lead to an unattractive result. Not only that: it creates a gap between the implant and the gums that allows oral bacteria to enter and cause infection around the dental implant, called peri-implantitis.
Peri-implantitis is like periodontitis, the serious form of gum disease that can lead to tooth loss in the first place. And just as periodontitis is the leading cause of tooth loss among adults, peri-implantitis is the leading cause of failure among implants that were initially successful. Thus, improving the seal will have both aesthetic and functional benefits.
To improve the potential bond between soft tissue and the dental implant, researchers at the University of Queensland created nanopores on the dental implant surface. These nanopores are about 40-80 nonometers in diameter. (For reference, a human hair is about 80,000 to 100,000 nanometers in diameter.) This improved the bond between the implant and gum cells in laboratory study.
They hope to start human trials with these advanced dental implants soon.
Advanced Dental Implant Techniques
We are always excited for new advancements to improve our dental implant procedures.
At Beyond Exceptional Dentistry, we already use advanced techniques to improve the bond between the dental implant and your natural tissues–including bones and gums. When we do dental implants, we utilize platelet-rich plasma and platelet-rich fibrin to improve healing.
These are concentrated healing factors that we take from your own body and place at the implant site to stimulate recovery and integration of the dental implant with your bone and soft tissue. We can further augment this with your body’s own stem cells to increase the healing even more.
Considering Dental Implants in Hilton Head?
If you are in the area of Hilton Head, SC, and are considering dental implants, you want to consider your options to get the best results from dental implants in terms of their initial appearance and their long-term durability. We can help you understand what makes dental implants unique at Beyond Exceptional Dentistry. Please call (843) 706-2999 today for an appointment with an implant dentist at our office in Hilton Head.
