Board Certified Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
We offer oral surgery services. Our practice offer to put patients afraid of the dentist to sleep with IV anesthesia. Waking up when the procedure is over provides the most pleasant dental experience solution. We start by offering an easy solution to book an oral surgery appointment.
If you’ve recently lost a tooth due to trauma or need a tooth extracted because of damage, it may be daunting to think about having an incomplete smile. There are many ways that you can go about replacing your missing tooth and it’s important to learn more about tooth replacements so you can choose one that’s best for you and your lifestyle.
Board Certified Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
You should be able to wear temporary dentures and eat a soft diet during the time of teeth extraction. While this is happening, your dentist is forming new replacement teeth. After the implant has bonded to the jawbone, the second phase begins. Our doctors will uncover the implants and attach small posts that protrude through the gums and act as anchors for the artificial teeth. Once the artificial teeth are placed, these posts will not be seen. The entire procedure usually takes six to eight months. Most patients experience minimal disruption in their daily life.
Dental implant surgery is a procedure that replaces tooth roots with screwlike posts and replaces damaged or missing teeth with artificial teeth that look, feel, and function like natural teeth. Dental implant surgery can offer a welcome alternative to dentures or bridgework that doesn’t fit well and can offer an option when a lack of natural teeth roots doesn’t allow building dentures or bridgework tooth replacements.
How implant surgery is performed depends on the type of implant and the condition of your jawbone. Dental implant surgery may involve several procedures. The major benefit of implants is solid support for your new teeth which is a process that requires the bone to heal tightly around the implant. Because this bone healing requires time, the process can take a few months.
What to Know About Oral Surgery and Teeth Extraction
The extraction is a team effort between your dentist, your oral surgeon, and you. Your dentist and oral surgeon will talk with you to determine how and where they should replace your tooth or teeth removal. Depending on the type of implant chosen and your specific condition, they’ll create a custom treatment plan personalized to meet your particular needs.
Here are some dental implant procedure options:
- Single tooth replacement: You would require only one implant and crown to replace your single missing tooth.
- Several teeth replacement: You would require an implant-supported bridge to replace several missing teeth.
- Complete teeth replacement: If all your teeth are missing, you would require full dentures or a full implant-supported bridge to replace them.
- Sinus augmentation: The quality and quantity of your bone where the oral surgeon will place your implant is key to implant success. Because the upper back jaw tends to have insufficient bone quality and quantity and is close to the sinus, it’s traditionally a challenging area to place dental implants successfully. Sinus augmentation, or sinus lift, helps correct this issue because it raises the sinus floor and helps develop bone for dental implant placement.
- Ridge Modification: Deformities in your lower or upper jaw can result in you not having enough bone for dental implant placement. To correct this issue, the oral surgeon will lift your gum away from the ridge, exposing the bony defect. They’ll then fill the defect with bone or a type of bone substitute to build the ridge up. Ridge modification can improve appearance greatly and increase your likelihood of experiencing successful implants.
What Types Of Prosthesis Are Available?
A single prosthesis (a crown or a cap) is used to replace one missing tooth. Each prosthetic tooth attaches to its own implant. A partial prosthesis (fixed bridge) can replace two or more teeth and may require only two or three dental implants. A complete dental prosthesis (fixed bridge) replaces all the teeth in your upper or lower jaw. The number of implants varies depending upon which type of complete prosthesis (removable or fixed) is recommended. A removable prosthesis (over denture) attaches to a bar or ball in socket attachments, whereas a fixed prosthesis is permanent and removable only by the dentist.
Our surgeon performs in-office dental implant surgery in a hospital-style operating suite, thus optimizing the level of sterility. Inpatient hospital implant surgery is for patients who have special medical or anesthetic needs or for those who need extensive bone grafting from the jaw, hip, or tibia.
Why Choose Surgeons?
Once you learn about dental implants, you may realize there is a way to improve your life. When you lose several teeth – whether it’s a new situation or something you have lived with for years – chances are you have never become fully accustomed to losing such a vital part of yourself. Dental implants can be your doorway to renewed self-confidence and peace of mind.
A Swedish scientist and orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Per-Ingvar Branemark, developed this concept for oral rehabilitation more than 35 years ago. With his pioneering research, Dr. Branemark opened the door to a lifetime of renewed comfort and self-confidence for millions of individuals facing the frustration and embarrassment of tooth loss.
Are You A Candidate for Oral Surgery?
If you are considering dental implants, your mouth must be examined thoroughly and your medical and dental history reviewed. If your mouth is not ideal for dental implants, ways of improving outcomes, such as bone grafting, may be recommended.
What Type Of Anesthesia Is Used in Oral Surgery?
The majority of extractions, implants, and bone grafts can be performed in the office under local anesthesia. IV sedation is available including Twilight anesthesia and general anesthesia if you happen to have dental phobia.
What Is the Recovery Time for Oral Surgery?
Recovery time for traditional oral surgery and implants typically ranges from three to four months, but it can take up to months. Implants on healthy individuals fuse to your bone more easily than individuals requiring bone grafting, which promotes better stability in patients who does not have enough bone available.
Implants Home Care?
Once the implants are in place, they will serve you well for many years if you take care of them and keep your mouth healthy. This means taking the time for good oral hygiene (brushing and flossing) and keeping regular appointments with your dental specialists.
Oral Surgery and Dental Implants
Using the most recent advances in dental implant technology and IV sedation like Twilight anesthesia and general anesthesia our doctors are able to place single-stage implants. These implants do not require a second procedure to uncover them but do require a minimum of six weeks of healing time before artificial teeth are placed. There are even situations where the implants can be placed at the same time as a tooth extraction – further minimizing the number of surgical procedures. Advances in dental implant technology have made it possible, in select cases, to extract teeth and place implants with crowns at one visit. This implant procedure is called “immediate loading.”
Who performs the implant placement?
Implants are a team effort between an oral and maxillofacial surgeon and a restorative dentist. While one of our surgeons performs the actual implant surgery, initial tooth extractions, and bone grafting if necessary, the restorative dentist (your dentist) fits and makes the permanent prosthesis. Your dentist will also make any temporary prosthesis needed during the dental implant process.
Why Select Implants Over Traditional Types Of Restorations?
There are many reasons to choose dental implants over other types of restoration practices. Why sacrifice the structure of surrounding good teeth to bridge a space? In addition, removing a denture or a “partial” at night may be inconvenient, not to mention that dentures that slip can be uncomfortable and rather embarrassing.
Implants for Teeth-In-An-Hour™
This procedure is a revolutionary dental implant concept providing patients with fully functioning teeth on dental implants in one single procedure that lasts about an hour. This technology was recently developed by Nobel Biocare and allowed for collaboration between both the restorative doctor and the surgeon. This merging of knowledge and experience achieves not only increased safety but also a more precise implant placement. In addition, the fabrication of a final prosthesis is completed prior to the surgery.
The computer-guided dental implant surgery is done in an arthroscopic fashion without requiring any flap reflection. This benefits the patient in that there is less postoperative discomfort, less swelling, and less bruising. Patients can often resume their normal activities the next day. The process starts when a CAT scan is taken of the patient’s jawbone. This CAT scan allows for the generation of a three-dimensional model of the jawbone that can then be used in virtual reality software to plan the implant placement without the presence of the patient. The results are more accurate implant placement and less chair time for the patient at the surgery office.
Factors that can determine the cost of oral surgery and implant procedures:
- The type of implants
- How many implants
- The materials and supplies we need to use for your custom-made treatment
- The location in your mouth where the implant is going to be placed
- The health of your mouth
- The medication you are on.
- The amount of bone you have in your jaw
- The type of dental restoration you need for your implant
- How long it takes you to recover and heal after getting dental implants
OUR PATIENTS SAY
We love getting feedback from our patients! If you’re still undecided about whether or not you can trust St. Luke’s OMS to handle your oral surgery needs, then please feel free to see what others are saying on our testimonials page.
I can’t say enough good things about Dr Saunders and the entire staff at OMS! The level of care is superior as is the genuine care for your overall well-being. The staff is always available to answer any of your questions and concerns and all of their locations are equally superb!
Called and made an appointment for a wisdom tooth extraction. Was in and out within a half hour. Unbelievable service and amazing pricing. Wouldn’t go anywhere else. Thank you to everyone there that made this painless.
I have had extractions and one implant so far with St. Luke’s OMS Bethlehem and highly recommend them. Dr. Isaac and her team have always been stellar. Gentle, caring, just a top notch group. So grateful to be a patient of the practice and Dr. Isaac.