Our team wants to treat gum disease to protect you from issues like tooth loss and weakened jawbone structure. But if this does occur, we want to strengthen the jaw and ensure it is ready for tooth replacement with dental implants. In today’s blog, your Encinitas/San Diego, CA, periodontist talks about jawbone grafting and laser dentistry can aid in strengthening your smile and replacing missing teeth!
How Gum Disease and Tooth Loss Weakens Jaws
What about periodontal disease can lead to a weakened jawbone? When the disease reaches a stage known as periodontitis, this can cause the connective tissues between the teeth and gums to weaken and erode, leading to missing teeth. Once you lose natural teeth, the body will respond by suspending the flow of calcium and phosphorus to the areas around the missing teeth. Without them, the jawbone loses mass and density, weakening to cause further tooth loss and even an older appearance. This also means your smile may not be able to support dental implants, limiting your tooth replacement options. But we can help with a laser-assisted jawbone grafting procedure.
The Grafting Procedure
With this procedure, we will need to strengthen the lower jaw so there is enough structure to support one or more dental implants. To begin, we will examine the smile with digital imaging technology to plan the process in detail. When the time comes for treatment, we will use local anesthesia and dental sedation to ensure the entire process is a comfortable experience. Our team will add new structure to the lower jaw. This could be donor or synthetic materials, or we could take bone tissue from the rear of your jaw, your hips, or your knee bone. Once attached, this will bond with the existing bone and provide new structure for your smile. Our team can then insert one or more dental implants into the area once it heals, providing new teeth that also helps strengthen the area as the body accepts them as natural tissues.
Help with Dental Lasers
How do we assist the procedure with advanced dental lasers? The technology will allow our team to make necessary modifications to underlying bone and connective tissues, as well as the gums. The lasers can do so with resin and accuracy, and without the need for scalpels or sutures. The procedure can also aid in the placement of dental implants, helping the placement area heal faster so you can return to routine function much sooner. If you have any questions, then contact our team today.
Schedule Your Appointment and Strengthen Your Lower Jaw
We can help improve your overall gum health with periodontal dental lasers. To learn more about fortifying your smile, call Dr. Ann Kania in Encinitas, CA, today at 760-642-0711.