Our Services
What are Implants?
Two dental implants
Dental implants are small, threaded, titanium cylinders that can be placed in the jawbone where teeth are missing, and are used to support crowns, bridges or dentures.
We can replace single teeth or fill gaps where many teeth have been lost, as long as there is a favourable clinical situation and enough bone depth where the implants need to be inserted.
At Apolline House we have been providing patients with this extremely successful method of tooth replacement since 1995. We chose the Branemark (Nobel Biocare) system of dental implants back then and still use them now as we feel that their two systems are the best available.
How is it done?
Jon Briggs performing the surgical stage of implant work
A surgical procedure is required to place the implants, and this is generally performed under local anaesthetic that you probably already have experienced when having routine dental treatment. Occasionally, cases require bone grafting procedures which we refer to hospital for specialist care.
During the surgery we strictly adhere to the protocols laid down by the Association of Dental Implantologists and Nobel Biocare, which includes an aseptic surgical technique as shown above. Treatment can take many months to complete - occasionally up to a year or even longer. However, our philosophy is that, as with all our work, if a job is worth doing it is worth doing well. Cutting corners often leads to failures which is why we don't! Having said that, implant failures do occur, but we do our very best to keep them to a minimum by careful patient selection and by implementing a tried and tested technique. So, please be patient if you decide to have teeth replaced by implant supported crowns or bridges - it just takes time!
With implant treatment, rigidly fixed bridges and crowns with excellent aesthetic results are achievable.
Neighbouring teeth are not 'drilled' in any way, and implants do not decay. The presence of implants can also preserve the remaining jawbone.
Here are the 'before' and 'after' photos of another of our patients who had a combination of implants and crown and bridgework
The surgical procedure is painless at the time of surgery but can be uncomfortable later, with swelling and bruising for 2-3days afterwards. Treatment duration is prolonged, and many patients need to be dedicated to see the treatment time through from start to finish.
By their very nature, implants are expensive. Each implant and the restoration on top of it will require meticulous planning (scans, models and measurements), and will use many expensive components, and considerable technical expertise and craftsmanship by the dental technician and ceramist.
There is a small risk of failure. Nothing in life is 100% certain and dental implants are no different. We audit our results and present success rates are running at 96- 97% here at Apolline House which is comparable to the top clinics around the world.
If, after reading this you are still interested in having dental implants, please read one of the leaflets available in the waiting area and ask your dentist if you are suitable for this type of treatment. We can even put you in touch with some of our patients who have had this treatment done so they can share their experiences with you. We will be delighted to help you if we can!
[Answer to the question above; The implant supported crown is the one on the top row, third from the left].
Whitening
We offer patients two types of whitening treatment here at Apolline House:
- Home Whitening. Performed by the patient at home over a 2-week period.
- Brite-Smile Whitening; a single stage whitening treatment done at the practice in one visit.
Home Whitening
This technique was first described in 1989 in the USA. The process involves having impressions (moulds) taken of your teeth and these are used to make thin, custom fitting, flexible trays.
Trays
Upper teeth whitened
This patient decided to whiten his upper teeth before doing the lower ones. Upper and lower teeth were the same colour to begin with. The photo clearly demonstrates the whitening effect that a 2 week course of home whitening had on his upper teeth.
The trays are checked for fit and to ensure they will not cause gum irritation and that they are trimmed to cover tooth surfaces only. Instruction is given to the patient on how to load these trays with the bleaching gel (16% carbamide peroxide) and they are instructed to wear them for a 2 hour period once a day over a 2 week period. During the wearing of the trays, hydrogen peroxide is slowly released and absorbed into both enamel and dentine and the result is whitening of both structures by oxidation agents. The results are long lasting (4-5 months on average) and the patient can top up the effect at this time just by wearing the trays for a few more times. If kept refrigerated, the gel will keep for a long time, and we can always supply extra gel if needed. Crowns, bridges and fillings will not be damaged by the bleaching gel, but neither will they be whitened. Therefore some dental work may need to be redone after the bleaching process in order to match with the new lighter shade of the whitened natural teeth.
Brite-Smile Whitening
Light activating the bleaching
The product used to whiten the teeth is 15% carbamide peroxide. An extremely bright light source is used to accelerate and intensify its bleaching action, not by heating up the gel but by photo-activating a component in the gel. After your teeth are polished clean, a plastic device is positioned round the lips to hold them gently out of the way, then a plastic gel solution is applied to the gum line. This hardens and protects the gums from the whitening gel which is then applied to the teeth. You will be asked to wear a set of orange goggles to protect your eyes from the light used to activate the bleaching process. After one hour of bleaching, the job is done and you can look at the results…
The biggest shark ever to have swam the oceans was the now fortunately extinct Megalodon. It could reach 16 metres in length and its jaws were 2metres wide! Fossil teeth are occasionally found (see picture), and these are as big as your hand!
Clinical Safety
Carbamide peroxide breaks down to hydrogen peroxide and urea. Urea is a normal body constituent and in these amounts are of no toxological consequence. The European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals reviewed the hydrogen peroxide produced and stated that there was no risk in the concentrations produced.
Studies using 10% carbamide peroxide showed that any mild sensitivity experienced ceased on stopping treatment, and also showed no soft tissue damage of concern. The gel has a pH of 6.5 and therefore does not give rise to acid etching of the tooth structure.
Aesthetic treatment
We are able to use modern tooth coloured filling materials, ceramic crowns and veneers to improve the appearance of patients smiles. It is often not necessary to have the full 'hollywood' style tooth makeover (in fact we don't like this effect!), but rather by subtle use of the above mentioned techniques we can make a tired, possibly self-conscious smile into a brighter, natural looking more confident one!
'White' fillings
Previously, tooth coloured fillings were only used to repair front teeth, but due to recent advances in dental materials technology, white fillings for back teeth are now available.
If you have a broken filling in a back tooth or if you have a cavity which needs a filling, there may be a choice between having a silver amalgam filling or a composite ('white') filling.
The appearance of the tooth coloured filling material is an obvious advantage, as can be seen from these before and after photographs, although on the downside they are more technically difficult to do, and they do not seem to last as long as the silver amalgam fillings. They therefore tend to need replacing more often.
Your dentist will be able to give you more information on the choice of filling material, depending upon the clinical situation.