Traditional Or Mini Dental Implant: Which Is Best For You?

If you lost a tooth due to decay or injury or know you need to have a tooth extracted soon, then you may be looking into all of your replacement options. While you may be a candidate for a dental bridge or denture, of course dental implants are a better option if you really want your smile to look and feel like it did when you had a healthy natural tooth. However, with dental implant advances, there are now more dental implant options than ever. One recent big introduction to the world of implants is the mini implant.

Is a traditional or mini dental implant right for you? Read on to learn how they differ and who make the best candidates for each technology. 

Traditional Dental Implants Explained

Traditional dental implants are made of three parts: a titanium post (or screw), a pontic (false tooth), and an abutment that attaches the two together. Typically, a titanium post is inserted into a patients jaw and then allowed to fuse, or osseointegrate, with the natural jaw bone for a while (this can vary from weeks to months depending on the dentist and patient), then the abutment and false tooth are attached to the post. 

The post of a traditional dental implant can range from 3mm to 5mm in diameter, and the diameter chosen depends on the quality of a patient's jaw bone, the tooth being replaced, and several other factors. 

The large diameter of the traditional dental implant post helps it withstand great force when a person is biting and chewing. This makes traditional dental implants the best option when replacing teeth that must withstand greater force when chewing, such as molars. 

Mini Dental Implants Explained

Mini dental implants are made of two parts: a titanium post with an abutment already attached to it and a pontic, or false tooth. Just like traditional implants, the post is placed into a person's jaw and allowed to osseointegrate, and then the false tooth or pontic is placed onto the post to complete the dental implant procedure. 

As you can see, placement of mini dental implants is very similar to traditional dental implants. However, the main difference between the two is that a mini dental implant post is smaller in diameter, and a mini dental implant post is typically from 2mm to 3mm in diameter. While these implants provide the same final appearance of a traditional dental implant, after obtaining one, the post in your jaw will be thinner. 

Who is a good candidate for a mini dental implant? These implants are useful for teeth that don't withstand a lot of force when chewing or biting, such as canine teeth, and in jaws that have very healthy, strong tissue in them already.

If you recently lost a tooth or will be having one extracted soon, then you are likely looking into your tooth replacement options. Implant specialists understand traditional and mini dental implants and which works best for each smile, so visit one and see which is best for you. Talk to a dentist, like those at Smile City, to learn more.