How Much Do Dental Implants Cost?

For many Californians, achieving the perfect smile is a lifelong pursuit, but dental implants often don’t feature in casual conversation.

The state is home to Los Angeles, a city that’s famous for many upstart vloggers, media professionals, and film industry icons, so it’s no surprise that we put a premium on being able to control personal appearance. According to the American Dental Association, one in four Californians feel some form of embarrassment about their oral health, and a staggering three in ten people actively avoid smiling.

Poor oral hygiene can lead to tooth loss and periodontal disease. An ailing tooth can also inhibit healthy bone growth if unattended. It may decay or infect your gums down the jawbone level, which requires a treatment plan and a few surgical procedures to remedy.

When it’s too late to save these teeth, our oral surgeon may need to recommend removal. However, the treatment doesn’t stop there, and dental implants might become essential to curb the long-term effects of missing some teeth.

What are Dental Implants?

Many Californians believe that the services of dental hygienists, periodontists, and oral surgeons are luxuries instead of necessities. Instead, they suffer long-term damage to their dental health, taking pain medications for years. Why suffer this way when there’s an easier solution in dental implants?

When your teeth sustain too much damage, our dentist will recommend extraction resulting in unnatural gaps beneath your gumline. Other teeth will then shift, so you will need teeth replacement devices to hold the structure in place. 

There are one of three typical solutions:

• Dental bridge
• Denture
• Dental implant

Dental bridges are false teeth. The dentist will cement these bridges onto neighboring teeth so that you can smile and eat. Dentures are more like dental appliances with a plastic base—you’ll need to remove, wash, and maintain these pieces for a lifetime.

Alternatively, dental implants are screw-like devices that your dentist will place into the crater to replace your missing teeth. The implants will fuse with your jawbone over a few months, eventually acting and feeling like natural teeth.

Orthodontists generally recommend dental implants over dental bridges or dentures. Dentures require periodic maintenance and cleaning, exposing the mouth to many possible infections. It’s also a removable appliance that covers a large chunk of the mouth, hindering experiences with food and drink.

Dental implants are more stable. These pieces are also non-removable and almost impervious to damage. Implants first appeared in 1952, when a Swedish oral surgeon thought to address the problems with teeth alignment post-extraction procedures at the root. 

Today, dental implants come the closest to the feel and function of natural teeth, especially compared to dental bridges, replacement teeth, and removable dentures.

Is it Expensive To Get a Dental Implant in California?

Dental implants have the highest long-term success rates of any teeth replacement procedure, including artificial teeth and a supported bridge. Oral surgeons often use it as part of maxillofacial surgery, a reconstruction of the face or jawbone that is common after vehicle accidents, skateboarding mayhem, or rooftop falls.

Price varies considerably in the region, depending primarily on how many dental implants you require. You will be paying for the materials and labor of installing them. Most of them are titanium, a metal more expensive than iron or steel but is much less prone to corrosion or rejection by the human body.

According to the American Academy of Implant Dentistry and The New York Times, the cost of one implant in California ranges from $3000 to $4000. However, you’ll need to review the payment policies and discounts of every dentist you visit. 

The average dental insurance plan in California gives an annual reimbursement limit of $1,500, but most insurance policies don’t cover a dental implant because it is an aesthetic fixture. However, people also need implants to bite, chew, and speak, at which point, a dental insurance plan might suffice. 

Although it might seem expensive, it is worth remembering that modern dental implants have a 98% success rate in preventing the ill effects of tooth extraction. Some local dentists charge far less than the average, so it is worth asking upfront.

Why Choose Dental Implants? 

Dental implants are like bone graft without the rigmarole of removing bone from one location to another. Instead, your dentist will use a biocompatible screw and seal the dental implant inside your gum with a crown. Sturdy and durable, these dental implants will stand on their own, irrespective of the arrangement or movement of neighboring teeth.

They’re also the most stable option among the three types of teeth replacements. They are also stable, reliable, and low maintenance, only needing local anesthesia for the installment procedure.

Most people need a dental implant because they’ve lost one or several teeth, and they want to keep eating and smiling with confidence. Sometimes, dentists use them as tools in other dental procedures to support removable dentures or anchor misaligned teeth into their proper positions.

Pros and Cons of a Dental Implant

Dental implants are the most recommended teeth replacement solution, but there are some drawbacks to balancing your decision.

Pros

• Aesthetics. The crowns look like real teeth, both in pictures and inside your mouth.
• Better for Your Bones. The extraction of a tooth can leave you vulnerable to periodontal diseases and bone loss. They minimize that risk by fusing into your jawbone.
• Durability. Dental implants are the longest-lasting teeth replacement solution. They fuse into the jaw and become as stable as natural teeth.

Cons

• Long Healing Process. It might take up to six months before your jawbone fuses with your new implants. If you need an immediate fix, consider alternatives.
• Cost. Most insurance plans offer little or no coverage for dental implant surgery.

Dr. Jack Nagrani: High-quality Dental Implants at Fair Prices

Are you wondering whether dental implants are right for you? Book a consultation with Dr. Jack Nagrani, our foremost dentist in Hanford, CA. He performs emergency dental procedures and cosmetic dentistry with top-class results. 

Call us now at (599) 422-6027. Dr. Nagrani and our staff have been practicing family dentistry for years, helping countless Californians achieve and maintain their perfect smiles. Call us today.