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Marketing Myths Exposed!

The Costs of Dental Implants:  Implant dentistry, when appropriately planned, is an excellent life-changing oral health investment.  Investing in dental implants provides long-term use and decreases dental health costs over the long run compared to the expense of “traditional dentistry”.  Traditional dentistry involves cutting down teeth for crowns and bridges, fillings and/or root canal treatment and all these procedures “remove” natural tooth support and most of the time will require replacement/repair which creates the cycle of additional expense.  The teeth supporting a bridge will require root canal therapy 50% of the time and bridges on natural teeth do not have the longevity of a single dental implant supporting a crown.  

Cheap Dental Implants are advertised in all media and this concept is very appealing to many of us and to our pocketbooks. However, when the term “cheap” is associated with dental implants, consumer beware!  This is an “attractive” marketing tactic and requires research on the part of the consumer to truly understand WHY the implants or procedures are marketed for a reduced cost. 

We implore you to research and know the facts as well as misrepresentations behind the treatment and marketing of implant dentistry and such terms as “Cheap Dental Implants” and encourage you to visit non-profit, educational websites such as www.missingteeth.org  to learn more about implants.

Below are some items to take into consideration in making your decision:

Mini Implants-Usually when a lower price implant service is advertised, it is a false comparison between the costs of appropriate sized “traditional” dental implants and inexpensive mini-implants.   These implants are called “mini” because of their small/narrow design.  These implants were originally designed to serve as “temporary implants” to help hold dentures in place while the “traditional” full-size implants are healing.  Once the “traditional” implant healed, then the “mini” implants were removed and the final restoration could be placed on the “traditional” implants. 

 Mini implants actually do heal to bone in most cases and due to their small size, they can be placed in areas with minimal bone width.  They may appear cost-effective and may be beneficial in very select cases. However, due to the mini-implant design, they are very limited in the types of restorations than can be placed on them.  Due to their small size, several more Mini-implants have to be placed to handle the “load” of an attached denture.  The attachments placed on Mini-implants also require more frequent maintenance because the attachments wear out (due to small size) and have to be replaced at a higher rate than attachments placed on “traditional” dental implants.  Mini-implants bend/fracture while in use and fail at higher rates than “traditional” dental implants, failures require them to be removed and changes have to be made in the denture to accommodate “new” mini-implants.  All of these “maintenance issues” create additional costs down the road.

Dentists with limited training in bone addition techniques prefer to use mini-implants as they have limited ability to fully manage the care of patients who require advanced bone regeneration procedures.  Mini-implants are also thought of as “simple” to place.  Computer Guided surgery with proper diagnostic radiographs is a must for proper placement.  The dental licenses of some general dentists have been restricted in the State of Arizona due to their failure to use appropriate radiographs and the subsequent immediate failure of the mini-implants.  The majority (95%) of “traditional” dental implants, when placed in properly prepared sites (adequate bone/soft tissue) and maintained properly, remain functional for over 20 years and usually for a lifetime of function.   Patients demanding long-term success of dental implant treatment, need to seek full explanation of dental implant options from qualified specialists.

 Implant Brands- An implant is a device surgically implanted in your body. To achieve long term results, the implant itself must be FDA approved with long-term scientific research backing the product. Over 200 hundred dental implant companies are located all over the world. We recommend you discuss the FDA approval of the dental implants your surgeon recommends.  An Arizona dentist lost his dental license in-part because of using NON-FDA dental implants which the dentist was self-manufacturing.

Additional costs of implant dentistry:  A diagnostic evaluation is essential for long-term implant success.  For example- before the oral surgeon can place the implant, a proper clinical and  radiographic assessment (like a 3D Scan) must be obtained. Why, you ask? A 3D Scan of the potential implant area is required for proper diagnosis of bone shape, density, height and width as well as proximity to any nerves or sinuses. If the ideal bone is not present- or if adequate soft tissue is lacking, a “set-up” surgery is necessary to regenerate the missing tissue and develop the foundation for the implant so that long-term results can be achieved. 

A surgical guide is ESSENTIAL  for accurate implant placement and will involve an additional cost that is well worth the investment.  A surgical guide (fabricated from the 3D Scan) allows the oral surgeon to virtually place the implant in the most ideal position and replicate the same results at the time of implant placement.  Accurate implant placement allows for proper crown placement, and chewing function for long-term results.

Experience and Training are the keys to long-term success for implant treatment. Implant Placement when properly planned and performed by experienced Board Certified Oral Surgeon utilizing the “teach approach” (working in conjunction with a qualified trained general dentist to place the crown, final restoration or denture) will last over 20 years in 95% of cases and may last the rest of your life.  As surgical specialist, oral surgeons are called upon to “fix” patients in which dentists have attempted to place implants but the implants have failed.  “Re-do implant dentistry” is more difficult and more expensive as bone and soft tissue usually have to be regenerated before placing new dental implants and the final results are usually less satisfactorily than if the patient had been treated by the oral surgeon originally.   Patients should consult with an experienced board certified oral surgeon before contemplating implant dentistry.