Why restoring your teeth is better than replacing them

You never really understand the importance of your teeth until you lose function of them.

Here at Hooper Tooth Conserving Dentistry in the Eastern Suburb of Rose Bay, we want to make sure you understand the implications of tooth loss and how restoring your teeth with minimally invasive methods is much better plan than replacing it when it falls out.

When it comes to your oral health, prevention is always the better solution

When was the last time you went to the dentist? Here at Hooper Tooth Conserving Dentistry we suggest an appointment every 6 months.

This is because when we examine your smile, we don’t just take a look and send you on your way, we are continually assessing the quality of your teeth, gums, bone density and other tissues. This means tracking the progress of each tooth in your grin and providing you with assistance and advice on your oral habits.

–          Fillings

Thought of as the most common tooth restoration, fillings are used to repair teeth in the first stages of decay. Here at Hooper Tooth Conserving Dentistry we use composite resin filling materials to repair and restore teeth. Composite resin materials can benefit you in the following ways:

• Repairable
• Invisible / aesthetic
• Capable of restoring teeth to their natural strength
• Minimally invasive (preserve as much of your remaining tooth as possible)

Composite fillings provide a virtually invisible and durable restoration for your smile that lasts for years. By covering cavities with fillings you are able to keep as much of the natural tooth’s structure as possible and prevent future decay.

–          Onlays

Where damage to the tooth goes beyond being able to be restored using a filling, onlays are the next best option. Onlays are a great way to restore broken, decayed or damaged teeth for a handful of different reasons:

• The materials are strong and long lasting
• They are a lot less expensive than a crown
• The onlay is made from composite resin materials
• The restoration preserves as much of the tooth structure as possible
• An onlay bonds to the natural tooth – strengthening it rather than weakening it over time

Here at Hooper Tooth Conserving Dentistry, we prefer to use onlays over crowns where possible. This is because the restoration is able to strengthen the tooth rather than remove some of the natural structure.

–          Root canal therapy

Root canal therapy becomes necessary when the tooth’s pulp becomes infected. A root canal is the part of the tooth where the tooth’s nerves (pulp) are present. The pulp is where the feelings of sensitivity originate from. If the tooth becomes traumatized, damaged or decayed, the pulp can become infected.

Left untreated, root canal can lead to abscesses and eventually, tooth loss. Root canal therapy can benefit the patient by restoring balance to your mouth, avoid further damage to the tooth and evade tooth loss.

Comparing the cost

The most obviously place to start is to ensure you understand that replacing lost teeth can be quite a costly affair. We are not talking about just money here either – tooth replacement costs time.

Depending on the treatment you require, your new tooth could be replaced using one or more of the following methods:

–          Dental implants

This is the most successful, healthiest and minimally invasive method to replace teeth, but it isn’t for everyone. Unfortunately for some, the jaw bone may not be dense enough to support the dental implant treatment and it may require a bone graft to the jaw bone prior to the treatment.

If a bone graft isn’t required, the patient will need 2 separate appointments:

1. Firstly, the dental implant needs to be placed in the jawbone and over a period of months, will bond with the bone to create  strong hold for the crown.
2. Secondly, once the bone and tissues have healed, a crown will be fabricated and fitted to the new imitation tooth root that will mimic the appearance and functionality of your natural teeth.

Is there another way?

Aside from dental implants, the other tooth replacement methods could require dental bridges or dentures. Although these methods are better than not replacing the tooth at all, they are still known to be detrimental to your oral health over time.

Our team in Rose Bay are invested in your oral health

Dental implants are a great way to replace your teeth but they are not for everyone. Save your smile from tooth loss and restore your teeth with one of our great restorative treatments available at Hooper Tooth Conserving Dentistry in Rose Bay.

Looking for a dentist in the Easter Suburbs?

Book an appointment today so we can examine the health of your smile.