Solving Big Problems With Mini Dental Implants

They may be small, but that doesn’t mean mini dental implants can’t have a big impact on your oral health. At Robert F. Wilcox, DMD, PC, our team is dedicated to providing the best dental care to patients in Butte, Montana.

As part of our comprehensive line of dental services, we offer dental implants to help solve many oral health problems. Sometimes less is more, and mini implants can actually provide a better solution than their traditional cousins.

Read on to learn more about mini dental implants and the problems they can help solve.

What are mini dental implants?

A traditional implant consists of two pieces: a titanium screw that goes into the bone and a thread that we use to attach the replacement tooth. The diameter of traditional implants is larger than 3mm.

Mini dental implants are a narrower dental implant then their traditional cousin. They’re about the size of a toothpick and are smaller than 3mm. Like traditional implants, they have a screw that goes into the bone, but instead of a thread, mini implants have a ball-shaped protrusion.

Mini dental implants have many benefits over traditional implants. We place them using less-invasive techniques, and that means they take less time to insert. Other benefits compared to traditional implants include:

Faster healing (typically weeks instead of months)
No bone grafts required
Less pain and discomfort
Fewer complications
Often less expensive

What big problems can mini dental implants solve?

Mini dental implants can help solve several big dental problems and can provide support for most types of tooth replacement. Here’s a closer look at how mini implants solve dental problems better than more traditional options:

Dentures

Dentures are commonly used to replace some or all of your teeth. While they have many benefits, one of the disadvantages of dentures is that they can slip or move out of place. Mini dental implants can help stabilize dentures and secure them in place.

Bridges

Dental bridges are used to connect one or more adjacent replacement teeth between two permanent teeth. But bridges can be difficult to keep clean and rely on the health of the permanent teeth to stay in place. If those teeth begin to decay, the bridge may need to be replaced.

Mini dental implants offer a lasting solution as an alternative to bridges. And they’re a good solution for patients who have been told they do not have enough bone material to support traditional implants.

Fixed crowns

Crowns are used to fully cover the area of a tooth that lies at and above the gum line. They are usually cemented in place and can cover a damaged or discolored tooth.

Mini implants are an option when the tooth is significantly damaged or decayed. The mini implant is placed, and then a permanent crown replaces the missing tooth.

Am I a candidate for mini dental implants?

To learn if mini dental implants could be the solution to your dental problem, start with a comprehensive oral exam with Dr. “Bob” Wilcox. He evaluates your teeth and jawbone to determine whether you’re a candidate for implants or mini implants.

While Dr. Wilcox will advise you about which solution is best for you, there are some contraindications. The most common are people with inadequate vertical bone in their jaw or too much bone loss and chronic tooth grinders, who are more likely to wear down the mini implants prematurely.

If you are considering dental implants and are wondering if mini implants could be a solution for you, contact our Butte, Montana, office or book online now.