Modern dental implants have a long history. Learn more about these unique tooth replacement options from your Castle Rock, WA dentist, Dr. L. Blaine Kennington.
Dental implants replace missing teeth from root to crown. Made of bone-loving titanium metal and natural-looking porcelain, Castle Rock, WA dental implants confer longevity and great aesthetics to gapped smiles. The history of dental implants goes back centuries, giving us the modern restorations we know and enjoy today.
What is a dental implant?
The modern dental implant consists of a titanium metal screw surgically placed into the jawbone. Attached to it are a metal abutment or post and a lifelike porcelain crown.
- L. Blaine Kennington DDS, your Castle Rock dentist at Cowlitz River Dental, is expert in implant placement. An Associate Fellow of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry, he understands the many advantages of this outstanding restoration.
Dental implants look just like real teeth, and patients report they feel and function very naturally, too. This is because the titanium in the implant device itself melds to the jaw bone through a wonderful process called osseointegration.
What is osseointegration? It was discovered quite by accident by an orthopedic surgeon. Dental researchers picked up on the wider applications of this process as it pertains to tooth replacement.
A brief history
Dental implants have an interesting backstory. Archeological digs in the Middle East and elsewhere have uncovered primitive forms of dental implants. Skeletons dating back to 600 A.D. and even further show evidence of tooth replacements put right into the jaws of adults. Typically, the artificial teeth were made of stone, jade and sea shells.
Fast forward to the 20th century, a orthopedic surgeon stumbled upon osseointegration as it related to joint replacements. He had occasion to remove a prosthetic joint made of titanium–experimental at this time. He had extreme difficulty in taking out the prosthesis because it had bonded exceptionally well to the patient’s bone.
Research into osseointegration continued mid-century when a Swedish scientist, Dr. Per-Ingvar Branemark, pioneered implants in rabbits. Seeing how well titanium bonded to animal bone, he first placed dental implants into humans in the 1960s. Patients retained the devices successfully for decades.
Thus, the modern dental implant was born, and since the 1980s, thousands of these smile-saving restorations have been placed in patients across the globe.
Candidates for dental implants
Dr. Kennington, dentist near Longview, recommends dental implants to patients in good oral and systemic health. If the individual lacks sufficient bone density to accept an implant, Dr. Kennington can augment the bone with donor tissue and other materials.
The procedure itself takes several visits, separated by several weeks to allow for the implant device to integrate to the bone. When fully healed, the Longview, WA dental implant readily accepts the post and crown and can well tolerate the chewing forces exerted by the patient’s jaw.
People who are disciplined about brushing, flossing and getting professional cleanings and exams at Cowlitz River Dental make the best candidates. Additionally, while smokers may receive implants, quitting tobacco improves the long-term retention of these modern tooth replacements.
Come to Cowlitz River Dental
Take advantage of Dr. L. Blaine Kennington’s expertise. Find out if dental implants could be your tooth replacement solution. Contact the office for a consultation today.