„Straumann“ implants
„Straumann” implants are considered some of the world’s best dental implants. The Switzerland based „Straumann” group have been researching, designing, and manufacturing these implants for over 50 years and consistently put out well-tested and well-designed implants.
Losing a tooth can be a gateway to a larger set of problems, so it is imperative you get it treated as soon as possible, which can be done effectively using „Straumann” Implants.
Why is it important to restore lost teeth?
Losing teeth is something that a large percentage of the population will eventually encounter. Despite this, a lot of misinformation exists around whether they should be replaced or not. Many people believe that losing a single tooth is fine and that their remaining teeth will make up for the loss. However, this is incorrect.
Firstly are the aesthetic disadvantages. If the tooth is in the incisor region at the front of the jaw, this will be visible whenever you smile or even open your mouth. While some people are fine with this, for a lot of people it will impact their self image and confidence. This alone causes many people to restore their lost teeth.
While aesthetics are important, so is functionality. Without a dental implant, many problematic changes will start to occur:
- Teeth around the gap will start to move towards the empty space. In the same way we use tension to move teeth into a correct position, the lack of tension causes the teeth to move wherever.
- This causes the teeth to become crooked and misaligned.
- Your bite will then become improper and thus problematic.
- These teeth are then harder to clean, which increases risk of tooth decay and further dental diseases.
- Your remaining teeth can lose stability and themselves fall out.
- Your jawbone may start to recede as teeth are lost, leading to a sunken and older look to the face.
- Further loss can lead to speaking and chewing problems, which will continue to escalate as long as the teeth are not restored.
- The unstable bite can lead to jaw pain such as TMJ (temporomandibular joint disorder), neck pain, and headaches.
As the condition progresses and further teeth move, crowd, or fall out, it becomes increasingly harder to restore the original look. Therefore it is essential that you replace even just a single lost tooth, as if left long enough can make it very difficult and costly to restore.
What are „Straumann” implants?
The „Straumann” group was founded in 1954 in the village of Waldenburg by Dr. I. Reinhard Straumann. Initially creating specialised alloys for use in watch springs, they had a breakthrough in using their alloy to treat bone fractures. This prompted the founder’s son, Dr F. Straumann, to start further expanding the field of orthodontology which led to the creation of the world’s first one-stage dental implant in 1974.
Nowadays, the „Straumann” group is one of the largest developers and manufacturers of many different dental instruments in almost all fields of dentistry. They are research pioneers and publish over 100 scientific publications every year.
Their flagship product, the „Straumann” implant is considered by many to be one of the best dental implants in the market. They have a high standard of quality and thoroughly test and validate their implants through many clinical studies.
Dental implants are a form of artificial tooth that performs identical to a natural tooth and is an effective long term replacement. Made from materials such as titanium or the alloy titanium zirconium, the root acts as an anchor to hold the new artificial crown in place. This artificial root is inserted into the jawbone in place of the natural tooth’s root, whereupon the jaw bone grows and bonds with the dental implant in a process called osseointegration. This process causes the dental implant to be a secure and stable base to hold the crown.
If multiple teeth are missing, the „Straumann” implant can act as an anchor for more complex restoration structures, allowing for multi-tooth bridges or whole-jaw dental prosthesis to be secured to the jaw.
What are „Straumann” implants made of?
„Straumann” have a wide range of different implants and materials in their catalogue. Different types of screw can be used in many different mouths and pathologies, with different levels of remaining bone. They have a selection of materials as follows:
- Grade 4 Titanium – The industry standard material, used in hundreds of thousands of implants every year.
- „Straumann” Roxolid – A custom alloy of titanium and Zirconium specifically designed by „Straumann”. It boasts an increased rate of osseointegration, as well as increased strength, allowing for thinner and shorter implants that can be used in many more situations. They reduce invasiveness and reduce the need for further procedures such as bone augmentation.
- „Straumann” PURE Ceramic – A metal free alternative made from high-performance zirconia ceramic, these implants are considered to be one of the strongest in the market. Every single implant is mechanically tested with a force that far exceeds the possible bite capacity of a human, with only the ones that pass being allowed to be implanted.
„Straumann” advantages
„Straumann” implants are one of the leading manufacturers of dental implants, and as such have a wide array of advantages over traditional implants:
- „Straumann” has decades of experience and are pioneers in the field of dental implantation who have published thousands of studies and papers.
- A wide variety of materials and types, allowing for a vast coverage of the pathologies they can treat.
- They are strong and versatile, allowing for single crows, dental bridges, or full dentures. This means they can replace any number of missing teeth with as few implants as possible.
- They can be implanted in just a single day, given the right circumstances.
- Their implants are rigorously tested, with forces higher than the maximum human bite being applied before they can be shipped out.
- Minimal invasiveness due to only needing a small number of implants to fix multiple teeth, as well as their custom Roxolid alloy allowing for a larger variety of shapes and sizes.
Same-day implantation
Since restoring lost teeth with dental implants is essential to preventing further deterioration, the ability to restore the teeth in a single day has proven to be the perfect solution.
With standard dental implants, the affected tooth must first be removed, followed by a 3-4 month healing period. Once done, the implant is inserted and another 3-6 months will pass before the crown is installed. This means that traditional dental implants can take up to 10 months to have a crown installed where a tooth once sat.
One-day implantation on the other hand only requires three visits but with all the implantation taking place in a single day. The first appointment is to confirm eligibility for the implantation and to take scans to generate a 3d model of your final smile. The second appointment is where all the surgical measures are performed, with the final being a follow-up.
Since all the procedures happen in one day, there may be a slightly higher level of postoperative discomfort, though care will be provided to mitigate this. Additionally, it will be a longer day of surgery vs the multiple shorter sessions in traditional implantation.
However, the advantages will, for most people, outweigh the disadvantages. The ability to have a tooth extracted and replaced in a single day is something that many people value more than any discomfort, and considering the success rate is practically the same it is often an easy choice.
Despite having a functioning set of new teeth after the single day of surgery, the „Straumann” implants still need time to heal. During this period of healing you should follow the postoperative care instructions given by the surgeon, to prevent the new implants becoming damaged or infected.
Not everyone is able to have one-day implantation however. This is because the treatment is more rigourous and requires a specific amount of bone mass to be present in the jaw (most often 5 mm is required), as well as a few other specific cases. In these instances, the procedure may still take a number of sessions, though it may still be possible to reduce the healing time between surgical sessions when compared to traditional dental implantation.
„Straumann” implantation in our clinic
We prefer to use „Straumann” implants in the majority of dental implantation cases, due to all the aforementioned benefits. Therefore, if you choose our clinic then you will be able to get „Straumann” implants and will undergo our dental implantation treatment program.
Our dental prosthodontist, who has more than 25 years of experience, will use a wide array of modern technologies and practices to perform not only the dental implantation, but also any additional operations required. These can be sinus lifts, and bone augmentation procedures.