Dental Implants or Dentures: Which Option Gives You the Most Confident Smile?

Maintaining dental health is essential, but too many people still struggle with oral problems that lead to damaged and missing teeth. Compiled data from several sources show that 3.5 billion people deal with oral diseases globally, and 45% of those over 30 have symptoms of gum disease. In the US, 25% of adults have untreated cavities.

Restorative dentistry, the broad term for oral treatments, appliances, and devices used to help improve the function of damaged or missing teeth, helps to manage these problems. When it comes to missing teeth, dental implants and dentures are frequently used methods, and both have advantages and drawbacks. 

Let’s find out which of the two is more likely to improve your teeth. If you live in San Leandro, Castro Valley, Oakland, California, or the surrounding areas, and you’re considering one or the other to help with your dental problems, Dr. Elena Davidson and her experienced staff at Davidson Dental Group are here to help.

The benefits of dental implants

As the name implies, this method uses a metal implant that acts like an artificial root, fusing with your jaw, a process known as osseointegration. An abutment is screwed into the implant, and a crown is placed on the abutment. A far newer method of replacing teeth than dentures, this technique has become popular because it offers a long-term solution with more stability.

Implants behave more like natural teeth and allow you to eat and speak more naturally, and they can last up to 25 years. Implants can be placed in your mouth in several ways, using either single or multiple metal posts, and they can be used to replace from one tooth to a mouthful of teeth.

The benefits of dentures

These removable dental appliances help to replace teeth using a range of materials like porcelain, nylon, resin, acrylic, and metal. Most people just think of the full dentures that need an adhesive to keep them in place on the jaw, but other options, including implant-retained or implant-supported dentures that use threaded posts similar to those used in implants.

While dentures can’t be offered one tooth at a time, you can get partial or full dentures to replace missing teeth. Dentures are also often cheaper than dental implants.

Determining the best choice

When it comes to choosing which tooth replacement option to use, you should consider:

Age

Implants are a permanent solution for replacing teeth, designed to be used for years like other teeth, so when children or young adults consider replacing a missing tooth, they make sense.

Dentures are a better choice if you’re not interested in the long process of healing necessary to fuse the metal posts to your jaw. Older adults still tend to rely on dentures over implants for that reason.

Bone density

Osseointegration works best when there’s enough bone to which to attach a post. Bone grafts can help if you lack enough bone, but they increase the time you’ll wait for your implant.

Hygiene

Dentures are removable and need to be cleaned regularly, but if you don’t want to deal with that inconvenience, implants stay in your mouth and are cleaned like your natural teeth.

Function

Implants may take longer to place, but the results look and feel closer to real teeth. And, implants are strong and stable enough to function like the real thing. Implant-supported dentures are stronger than the type that use adhesive.

Both options have pros and cons, but if you still have questions about which solution is best for you, call or message the Davidson Dental Group in San Leandro, California, today for an appointment.