All dental implant procedures require expertise and precision to be carried out successfully. Some patients are often confused as to who is best qualified to provide their treatment. The first thing to understand is that there is no such thing as a ‘dental implant specialist’ per se. But there are professional, skilled and certified doctors who can carry out these procedures.
Typically, dental implants are carried out in the jawbone. Hence, it is also natural that dental specialists, who regularly perform surgery within the jawbone are well experienced to carry out dental implants.
• Prosthodontists
These doctors are recognized specialists in all procedures of tooth replacement including dentures, bridges and dental implant restorations. They are fondly called ‘ architects of the smile.’
During the post-graduate residency program of a Prosthodontist, they undergo extensive training in all types of dental implant restorations and the prosthetics. They are also trained on full mouth reconstruction using dental implants, implant-supported dentures and challenging esthetic anterior crowns.
Another part of a Prosthodontists expertise is the designing and detailing of the steps involved in dental restoration. They specialize in returning your smile through constructive surgeries or treatments.
They also perform screenings and diagnosis of oral cancer, temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
They work closely with dental laboratories and patients are often referred to them by general dentists for treatments.
• Dental Implant Surgeon
This doctor is either a Periodontist or an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon with specialization in surgical procedures. He has more surgical training and experience than other specialists in this field and also general dentists.
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
These surgeons are equipped with at least four years of post-graduate hospital residency training. Within this time, they undergo a full year in the administration on anesthesiology. They are the only health care specialists apart from the anesthesiologists to be so versed in all levels of sedation.
They are trained on surgical procedures such as the removal of wisdom teeth, and corrective jaw surgery. There is also extensive training in the surgical placement of dental implants and bone grafting.
They focus on treating problems related to the hard and soft tissues of the entire face and mouth. You can be sent to them if your orthodontist suspects a problem with the alignment of your jaws.
Procedures performed by them include tooth extractions, corrective jaw ( Orthognathic surgery), cleft lip or palate surgery.
They also consult on cases of obstructive sleep apnea, removal of lesions, biopsies, diagnosis and treatment of oral cancers, facial pain and infection.
• Periodontists
Quite similar to Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, Periodontist post-graduate training includes a three-year residency program, which includes surgical, dental implant procedures, as well as periodontal (gum) surgery.
Every specialist has a role to play in dental implant procedures. The ideal way to provide implant treatment involves the cooperation or team effort of a dental implant surgeon and one of the highly skilled specialists.
When each doctor focuses on his/her area of expertise, you will find that the Periodontist or Oral surgeon provides the dental implant surgery and another specialist like the Prosthodontist designs and creates the replacement teeth.
A choice of what specialist can carry out dental implant becomes a lot easier when you are correctly informed.
Astal dental offers you the services of various highly skilled and professional doctors. All well experienced and adequately equipped to solve every dental problem.
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