Hi, I'm Dr. Jason Dulac. I own and operate Dulac Dental of Springfield in Springfield, Virginia. We are the longest continuously owned and operated dental clinic in Springfield, Virginia. First, Dr. Trap many, many decades ago, then Dr. Bruce Markoff for almost 50 years, and now myself for almost a decade. We are the longest continuously owned and operated dental clinic in Springfield. I have a great team. We're located just off the beltway between Springfield Mall and Mike's American Grill. Today, I want to talk to you about dental implants.
What is a dental implant?
I love placing dental implants. It's one of my favorite things to do. I have a lot of experience in it, and giving a patient a tooth back is a very rewarding experience. What is a dental implant? A dental implant is a titanium screw or anchor that's placed into the bone to replace the root of the tooth. Once that's in, you can do a lot with it. Most commonly, we replace a single tooth. An implant with a crown on top looks almost identical to a tooth. No one else will be able to tell except for you and me. Implants can't get decay, which is great. They can get gum disease, so they do need to be maintained.
How do you maintain dental implants?
I have a special laser in the office for maintaining implants. If you've had an implant previously placed and it is, for whatever reason, failing—which is exceedingly rare but does happen—please give me a call. I can disinfect that implant for you with my laser. I'm also known as Dr. Fix-it in the area. If you've had something come apart or break on an implant, again, exceedingly rare. With the older systems, implants have been placed for almost 50 years now, so there are a lot of older systems out there. I have every restorative platform that's ever been made in my office, and I take pride in being able to fix things that other dentists aren't able to fix. If you've had something break or is in the process of failing, which is again rare, please give me a call. I can handle that for you.
What expertise do you have in dental implants?
I have a lot of training and expertise in implants, more than 98% of dentists in the United States. I'm on faculty at the International Implant Institute where I teach other dentists how to place implants. I love placing implants. It's very rewarding, and I have a lot of experience in it. I want to make sure it goes properly for you.
What is the process of getting a dental implant?
If you're missing a tooth and you need an implant, give us a call. The first step is to get a 3D X-ray. That shows me the bone in all three dimensions. That ensures we place the right size implant for you and that it's very safely placed. Once the implant is placed, it takes between 2 and 4 months for the bone to grow into the implant. The implant's made out of titanium. The body loves titanium. It's what all the hips and artificial joints are made of. Very high success rate, over 98% of the bone will grow into the implant and the body will take the implant in. Once it's integrated, we can put whatever we want on top. A lot of times, that's a single tooth. You can do two implants and replace three or more teeth like a bridge on two implants. If you have four or more implants, you can replace an entire arch.
Why choose implants over dentures?
If you've had dentures, you have no more teeth and you want teeth back or the closest thing to it, give us a call. Dentures come out easily. It's not easy to eat fruits and vegetables, steak, pizza, and everything else that's good to eat in life. An implant has a similar chewing force to your natural tooth, while a denture only has about 25%. Patients with dentures are limited in what they can enjoy. Once you have something back that's implant-supported, so teeth on implants or a denture on implants, you have much more bite force. It's much more natural. It's not going to come out. You have more confidence going out in social situations. With four or more implants, we can replace the entire arch.
Can implants be used with partials or dentures?
You can also use them to anchor ill-fitting partials or dentures where you can take the denture in and out and clean it and still remove it or modify an existing denture, but you have much more chewing force than just the denture without the anchors.
How are implants maintained long-term?
Implants are very successful. They can't get cavities. They can get gum disease. It is important to clean and maintain them like you clean and maintain your natural teeth. I recommend staying on your regular or recommended cleaning interval once you have implants. It's very rare that an implant would fail, but since we've been placing them for 50 years, I do have older patients that have had bone loss around implants. Once that happens, it's more challenging to maintain. I have a special laser with an angled lens that goes along the threads on the implant to clean it, helping maintain that implant in as healthy a state as possible for as long as possible.
What to do if an implant breaks?
If you have an implant with some bone loss and you'd like to come see me, it's the only laser in the United States that's recommended for this. It's called the water. I have one in the office, and we can clean around that implant for you. Again, I have a doctor fix-it reputation. If you have something break inside your implant or an implant break and you'd like some creative solutions or someone experienced in a lot of different ways you can still maintain the implant and still use it as an anchor, please let me know.
If we punch the tissue, meaning there are no stitches, there's almost nothing to worry about. You might experience mild spot bleeding in the area if you brush and floss, and mild pressure. Most of the healing and discomfort and post-op complications come with the extraction, not with the implant. If there are any sutures around the implant to hold the gum down around it, you should be gentle in the area, be gentle brushing, and be gentle eating. Kind of avoid it for a couple of days. We'll have you back in a week or two to take the stitches out.
With an implant, if the site's closed over or if there's a healing cap on there and there are no stitches, you can pretty much do whatever you want. You're not going to hurt it. The only thing I advise against is using a water pick on the implant. You can use a water pick everywhere else, and I do want you to brush and floss. If you can't fit your full toothbrush in there, I'll give you a little one to brush the cap with. But don't try and blast the water pick down under and into the implant.
The implant is at its weakest about three to four weeks from the time of surgery. So after the first couple of days, you shouldn't feel anything at all. If you're seeing any redness, pus, bleeding, pain, or you're worried something's moving, especially if it's about a month from the surgery, three to four weeks from surgery, give us a call. If you're going to have a problem, it's usually three to four weeks from surgery.
Dental implants are the standard of care for replacing missing teeth and provide a fixed solution to removable dentures. Dental implants are natural-looking replacement teeth that are fixed in the jaw.
Dr. Dulac places and restores dental implants in Springfield, VA. Having the same doctor place and restore the implant offers numerous advantages. If you have an existing relationship with a periodontist or oral surgeon who you prefer to place the dental implant, Dr. Dulac is happy to work closely with the surgeon to plan you case so that you achieve the best possible final outcome.
The implant itself is an artificial tooth root made of titanium, an implant is surgically placed into the jawbone to support tooth-replacement structures such as crowns, bridges and dentures. While the implant mimics the root of the tooth, the replacement structure looks and feels just like a natural tooth, providing patients with a permanent solution that replicates the fit and feel of natural teeth.
Full arch implants are an option for patients who are missing most or all of their teeth and are seeking to reconstruct their entire mouth for restored function and appearance. Missing teeth can lead to serious dental problems and can significantly inhibit your ability to eat and speak. Full arch restoration implants are most often placed with dentures or bridges, providing patients with a natural and functional restored smile that offers numerous advantages over traditional removable dentures.
Dr. Dulac works closely with local surgeons and labs to provide “teeth-in-day” services, where you walk out with implant retained teeth the day of implant surgery. Ask Dr. Dulac, one of the leading dentists in Springfield, VA about this service to learn more.
Implant Restoration
Dental implants are essentially titanium metal roots placed in ones jawbone. After these implants fuse with a person’s bone we can add a single tooth here, bridgework or even removable appliances. They are very successful and long lasting with minimal discomfort.
Patient Testimonial:
