Okay. Now, let me share with you before we talk about what are the options to put your teeth back in. Let me share with you a personal experience I've had with my mom.
So for the longest of, for as long as I can remember, my mom has had some missing teeth on the back. And after years, and years, and years, and years of me convincing my parents to do something about it, my mom to do something about it, she finally got her teeth put back in there. And you know what you said to me? I can, I remember it as clear as day that she said to me that, "Oh my God, now I can enjoy my food "a lot easier. "Now, I can chew a lot easier. "Now, my jaw doesn't feel sore anymore. "And now for some reason, the food taste better too." I'm like, "Okay." Well, I did say, "I've been telling you all this while "for many, many years. "Well, I told you so." Oh gosh, well, you know, I always say, "You never know how much you miss something "until you actually lose something."
So which is why taking teeth out has always been, I'm not too sure about other dentists, but it's always been Tooth Heavens' last, last, last, last worst-case scenario.
We always try any other options to keep the tooth there because nothing ever feels the same as your own teeth. And nothing ever feels better than having teeth in the mouth because it makes a big difference, believe it or not.
So I guess, coming back to the topic.
What are the options to put something back in?
Look there are many options out there. And we can sort of generalize it down to two options. The first option being removable option, something you can take in and out. And, of course, you or your love or somebody you might know off you, you might know this.
Dentures
I'm talking about dentures. So dentures, yes, some things that you can take in and out and that it come in plastic, come in metal form.
- And I guess it would sleeve back in, it does the job. I guess the good thing about dentures is that it can give you multiple teeth, which is one plate or one device. So it's pretty cost-effective in that way.
- And then it's also, I guess, cheaper in general, in the long run. And it's a little bit quicker as well. It takes about anywhere between a couple of weeks, to maybe a month, or maybe up to two months sometimes.
So but I guess the downside of dentures is, well, some people say, "Oh, what? "I don't want to have plates like my gran, my nanny, "my nana has. "Or I don't want to have teeth that can come out like my dad's teeth, you know?”
So that's the problem with dentures?
It's the fact that it's not glued in. You can, have to take in and out. You can't go to sleep with it. You have to put it inside before you go to bed. And food can get stuck underneath as well, which can get quite annoying.
And I've had some patients where they've told me once that they drive out of their house and go, "Oh craps, I actually forgot my teeth at home." And they drive back home to pick it up and they come out again. So it can be a bit of a hassle having dentures.
But that being said, it does the job as well.
Now, there are fixed options, something that's glued in and you can't take out. Now, these things look, and fixed options consists of generally two options.
You could either have bridges or you can have implants.
Bridges
Now, let's talk about bridges first.
Now bridges, essentially to put it simply, it's like the West Gate Bridge, yeah. Two poles on opposing ends, and then you have something hanging off it there.
So it's literally a cap, a cap on one side, and then you have a tooth that's stuck on there. Now, as it's a fixed option, I guess the good thing is that it's permanently there, you can't take it out. And I guess in some ways, depending on the type of bridge that you want.
You can have direct bridges, indirect bridges, and they vary in terms of costs. So they're generally the cheaper of the fixed options if you get what I mean. And but I guess the downside is that to put something over the tooth, on adjacent teeth there, you're gonna have to shave a bit of the tooth down.
Now, I guess, depending on what the condition is of the adjacent teeth. If they, you know, are broken down and probably should warrant a cap anyways, then maybe that's the way to go.
But if its virgin tooth with nothing on it, it's, you know, a healthy tooth. To actually put a drill onto it and sort of take off a little bit, just to sort of and stick something on, it's a bit of a shame. And it comes with its own risks as well, not a very high risk.
Especially with technology these days where we use, at Tooth Heaven, we use 3D scanning, and no more using yucky molds anymore. So those things are more accurate, and you can get, the risks are quite minimal, but there's still risks.
Implants
Now, I guess, and the other fixed option would be to have implants. You know, a screw that goes into the bone and it stays in there, just like your own teeth.
Now, I guess the problem with that is the time. So depending on what the quality of the bone, or if you have a tooth that needs to be taken out, or there's an infection in the bone itself. It might take anywhere up to four months to sometimes up to eight months to complete the whole thing.
Now, that being said, even though I say eight months, you don't have to come in every day for eight months, you'll get sick and tired of us.
But I guess you probably have to come in maybe three, maybe four times out of the whole eight month period there. Simply 'cause we gotta make sure it heals up before we move on to the next step, and the next step, and the next step, and not rush through it.
I guess the other downside is the costs. It's the dearer of the three options. And different places charge differently. And there are different brands out there as well.
Now, at Tooth Heaven, we'll be able, we use the best materials that comes from Germany, and we stand by it, and we know it works, phew, beautifully with a good track record as well. Especially if you're spending so much money on it.
You wanna have the best materials that lasts for, that does what it's supposed to do because if it fails, then it gets a little bit trickier to fix. That's another conversation for another time.
But I suppose the good thing about the implant is that it doesn't involve the adjacent teeth. You don't have to shave or touch any of the adjacent teeth. You're just working on that one spot only.
And I guess the other good thing about it is that you can floss in between and it feels like your own teeth. And, you know, you can chew on it and not have any dramas. And like my mom, you're gonna enjoy your food a lot better. And maybe the food will taste a bit better too.
And yeah, so those are the general options on how to fix, how to put teeth back in. Of course, it's only generally nature to know exactly what works for you and your teeth.
The best advice would be to see a local professional or to book an appointment with the guys at Tooth Heaven. And we can sit down and have a chat with you too to go through all the pros and cons, and then let you decide whatever you want. And then we go with whatever you choose really.
So until the next time, until the next video. I hope this video has helped you in some way or form. And thank you for your time, bye now.
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