A Guide to San Diego Dental Implants
Dental implants are a popular way to restore your smile to its former beauty. If you are missing teeth, implants are an important part of the restoration procedure. They are basically posts that look much like screws. They are used to anchor your replacment teeth and are installed into the jaw bone. If you do not have proper jaw bone structure, you may need a bone graft before you can get implants. There are a variety of San Diego dental implants practitioners who can perform this procedure from start to finish.
For example, one dentist who does implants in the area is Dr. Joseph D’Angelo. Dr. D’Angelo and his team have ample experience installing implants for the purpose of restoring missing teeth. On his web site, you can view before and after photographs which show you exactly how fantastic implants can look. Dr. Curtis Chan is another San Diego dentist who offers dental implants as well as a variety of other cosmetic dentistry procedures. It is always good to choose a dentist like one of the two mentioned above who offers other procedures in addition to implants. This is because implants may not be ideal for everyone, and there may be a procedure that the dentist thinks may work better.
For most, implants do perfectly fine. They are permanent, however, and take a long time to install. The first step is to install the cylinder into the jawbone. After the cylinder is placed it takes months for healing and new bone growth to happen. After healing is complete, the abutment is installed. The healing period for this is substantially shorter. Finally the replacement tooth or set of teeth are installed. You will be amazed at the difference in your smile after the entire procedure is complete. Because of the extensive nature of this procedure, you can expect to pay quite a bit.
Depending on the dentist you choose, you can expect to pay anywhere from $500 to $3000 per implant, not counting the new teeth. In the San Diego area you will find yourself on the high end of the pricing scale as compared with a small town. Most dentists who offer cosmetic dentistry that is not covered under dental insurance offer financing plans for customers with satisfactory credit. With a financing plan, you can make payments on the cost of your San Diego dental implants procedure rather than being required to pay the entire amount at once.
