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Dental implants are artificial roots that are placed in your gums that are used to hold onto false teeth. They are most commonly made out of titanium, which is immune to corrosion and is extremely strong. There are four main types of dental implants, but they do not offer different features over each other. Instead, the different types of dental implants are used depending on the strength and health of your jawbone, which your dentist will assess before installing the implant.
Root Form Implants
Root form implants are the most common and least expensive type of implants available, and are placed directly in your jawbone. Root form implants resemble screws in a conical shape, and are used in healthy mouths where the jawbone is relatively thick and deep, as root form implants require adequate space to hold a false tooth properly.
Ramus Frame Implant
Ramus frame implants are used in place of root form implants if the jawbone is too thin. Ramus frame implants attach to the jawbone at the back of your mouth, by your molars, and at a single point near the chin. This structure is beneficial because it reinforces your jawbone and makes injury much less likely, and can be used to hold false teeth, crowns, and dentures, while other types of implants only support false teeth and crowns.
Transosseous Implants
Rarely used, transosseous implants are rods installed through your chin and up into your jawbone, where the false teeth are then installed. These types of implants require a great deal of surgery, and are much more expensive than any other form of dental implant. However, transosseous implants are able to be installed in mouths where the jawbone is dangerously thin and unable to support any other type of implant. There are modern alternative methods that can be used to install crowns and false teeth if your jawbone is too thin for any other type of implant.
Plate Form Implant
Similar in function to root form implants, plate form implants are placed directly in the jawbone. They are flat pieces of metal that have prongs on them that hold the crown or false tooth in place. Like root form implants, they require a healthy and relatively thick jawbone in order to be properly installed. However, they are less common than root form implants (and as such it's unlikely that your dentist will install one) as they are slightly more expensive. To learn more about dental implants, contact someone like Carpenter Dental, Charles M. Carpenter DMD, and Chas M. Carpenter DMD.
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