My son is on a professional hockey team. He had a tooth knocked out and recently had the root form of a dental implant placed for a permanent replacement. However, now his teammates have told him to wait to put in the implant until he is done with his hockey career. They said this is because of the likelihood of a secondary injury. We are looking for a good temporary replacement for him and are considering a Maryland Bridge. What do you think? Also, does he need to remove the root form?
Angela
Dear Angela,
It is great that your son has teammates with experience to warn him about this. It is one thing to have a tooth knocked out, but it is a completely different set of circumstances when a dental implant gets knocked out. Because the dental crown which serves as the “tooth” is bonded to the implant it will likely rip the whole thing out which will do serious damage to the bone in the area.
A dental implant is a fantastic tooth replacement and will serve him well for many years. You don’t need to remove the root form. In fact, I encourage you to leave it there so that he’ll have everything ready for when it is time for his permanent replacement. Additionally, the root being in place helps to preserve his jawbone.
A Good Temporary Replacement
I wouldn’t consider any type of dental bridge a temporary replacement. Anything that alters even a portion of your tooth structure, should not be considered permanent. Instead, I am going to recommend your son get a dental flipper. They are much less expensive and easily replaceable.
If it is for a front tooth, I highly recommend getting seeing an expert cosmetic dentist to make the flipper. This way the false tooth will blend in completely naturally with the other remaining teeth.
This blog is brought to you by Des Moines Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Phelan Thomas.