Dental Implants: Where Did They Come From?

As you may know, dental implants are the premier tooth replacement option. Not only do they look and feel great, but they’re the only way of replacing a missing tooth that can prevent the bone loss you’re likely to see with dentures and bridges.

However, it’s taken a lot of work to get dental implants to be as good as they are. If you want to know more, here’s a little bit of the incredible history of this dental treatment.         

From Seashells to Titanium

The history of dental implants may be a little longer than you think. For centuries, people have had the idea that you could replace a tooth by securing something to the jawbone. Archeological studies have found that Mayan civilizations even placed seashells and stones in the jaws of people who were missing teeth.

However, it wasn’t until the 1950s that titanium was discovered to be the optimal material to use for dental implants. A Swedish orthopedic surgeon found that he could not remove titanium optic chambers that he had placed in a rabbit’s leg because they had fused to the bone itself. Since then, this metal has been prized for its ability to integrate into the bone structure.

Speeding Up

This process, where the bone accepts and fuses with an implant, is called osseointegration. The next phase of development for dental implants was to try and get this to happen as quickly as possible. Initially, dental implants were smooth. However, research showed that bone was able to better integrate with roughened implants.

Later, screw-like threads were added to implants to add more stability, which allowed dentists to place the abutment onto the implant almost immediately. This meant that the entire procedure would take significantly less time than it would otherwise.

Covering More Ground

In recent years, dental implants have become remarkably effective, which has allowed dentists to replace even more teeth with just a few implants. The first step was to use two implants to secure a dental bridge, which allowed them to replace up to three or four teeth at a time. In the modern era, this has developed into “All-on-4” tooth replacement, where patients without any teeth at all can have a full set of dentures secured onto just four dental implants.

The work of making dental implants as incredible as they are now is a result of the efforts of dedicated dentists and surgeons, each of whom contributed a great deal to their field. Hopefully, understanding this history a little better has given you a newfound appreciation for this incredible treatment.

About Our Practice

At Gerome and Patrice Family Dentistry, we’ve been serving families in our community for over three decades, which means that we have the experience necessary to provide gentle but efficient dental care to patients of all ages. No matter your oral health issue, we can help you to reach your smile goals.

If you have any questions about dental implants, we can be reached at our website or by phone at (513) 677-1349.