Dental Expert: Arvanitis and Associates

Experts Home > Dental

Tip of the month

Are you about to lose a tooth?
Have you been told by your dentist that you need to have one or more teeth removed? If so then you will be excited to learn that new technologies and techniques allow you to have your tooth replaced that same day with a new implant suported tooth. That's right!!! At the time of removal of the tooth a brand new tooth, stronger than the old one and impervious to decay can be placed.
The holy grail of implant dentistry has always been to be able to replace the tooth at the time of extraction and in 2006 this is finally a reality. When implants were first invented the first considerations were all about whether or not the implant would fuse to the bone and positioning the implant for esthetics was not the main consideration. The implant was placed where the bone was often leaving much to be desired esthetically. With the cosmetic dentistry boom of the 1990's people started expecting more. As the implant technology improved we stopped worring about the implant and started thinking about what the teeth attached to the implant would look like. The marriage of cosmetic dentistry with implants finally started to make implant teeth look like teeth, but problems persisted mainly with the tissues around the implant.
When a tooth is removed the bone around the tooth remodels right away resulting in loss of this bone. Unfortunately, it is this lost bone that is responsible for holding up the gums, so the bone loss leads to the gums pulling back as well. This isn't a big problem in the new implant with the heights of gum tissues being uneven. Loss of the bone also means that it has to be re grown and a lot of grafting then becomes necessary.
Well technology and techniques have improved. Today we can put the implant in right at the time or removal of the tooth. No bone shrinkage! No gum shrinkage! No need to go back and rebuild the atrophied tissues with painful, expensive grafts before the implant.
Imagine losing the tooth, having it put back and leaving the office with a brand new tooth as good as or better than the old one. No dentures, no embarrassing missing teeth. This is the new reality of dental implants.

Most recently answered questions

I brush, floss and rinse with mouth wash, and my gums are still receding. I quit smoking a year ago and now my gums bleed. They never bled when I was smoking. I don't have a lot of money but I'm afraid that I'm going to loose my teeth. What can I do?

First of all you must see a dentist and have your situation addressed. Don't worry too much about the cost. Let the dentist know you are on a tight budget and I'm sure they will be able to work out something affordable for you. To date I have rarely if ever treated anybody with gum disease who was not a smoker or previous smoker. A dentist knows from the minute they see periodontal disease that smoking is involved. So as a previous smoker now is the chance to clear up the damage of the past and begin anew. Congratulations on kicking the habit.


I've done root canal on tooth, then had it redone because apparently it was not done right. And now my newest dentist wants is redone the second time... Does that sounds right to you? What should I do?

Up until the re-treatment of the root canal it seems that everything has been tried to save this tooth. At some point a frank discussion should be had regarding what other options you have. It would seem that this is that point. Please keep in mind that I am commenting without seeing a radiograph or having examined the tooth in question, but you do have other options. How much money do you want to spend on one tooth when no one will guarantee you that even with a second re-treatment you will still have this tooth in 5 years? Sometimes treatment options come down to a matter of money. If cost is no object and you want to try every possible treatment to save the tooth then by all means treat it again. If however you want the treatment that has the highest probability for long term success then you should ask specifically whether a second re-treatment will meet this objective or is it a maybe. If the answer is maybe then it is my opinion you should consider other treatment options.


My son is 19 and has calcium spots on his front teeth.Will whitening help with this?

Whitening may even out the difference between the white spots and the adjacent tooth areas. There are times though where the white spots whiten further and the effect is white teeth with whiter spots. There are other non invasive treatment also available to help deal with these hyper-calcified areas. One treatment is enamel abrasion. A light buffing of the surface can eliminate the spots that don't go too deep. If none of these things work then you may have to consider some conservative bonding or porcelain veneers.

Ask this expert a question

Your email address:

*Question (255 character limit):

To prevent abuse of this form by spammers, please leave this field blank:

* Red star indicates required fields