Dental implant: An artificial tooth-root made with titanium. Implants can support crowns, bridges, and all types of dentures.

Tooth Removal with Socket Preservation (Ridge Preservation): When a tooth is extracted and an implant cannot be placed at the same time, the site is grafted. This procedure allows us to help maintain the existing bone and regenerate significantly more bone for the future implant’s stability.

Ridge Augmentation (Jaw Bone Augmentation): Without Socket Preservation, a bony ridge will significantly resorb, which will affect an implant placement for the future. In those cases, a bone graft is needed prior to implant placement. The implant(s) can then be placed during a second surgery about 4 months later.

Sinus Bone Augmentation: The maxillary sinuses are air-filled spaces between the upper back teeth and eye sockets. If those teeth have been missing, sinuses expand downward (pneumatization). In some cases, even when the teeth are still present, there is only minimal bone between the teeth and sinus cavity. A sinus bone augmentation can be done to correct this defect by lifting the sinus membrane and adding bone material. In some cases, the implant(s) can be placed simultaneously, while in others they will be placed 4-6 months later. 

Materials: These procedures often require additional materials, including bone grafts (from human cadaver bone or bovine origin), membrane barriers and regenerative boosters at the time of implant placement. The bone graft is either allograft (human cadaver bone), or xenograft (bovine/cow bone). 

What About Sedation?

To help our community further and make sure that dental anxieties do not get in the way of our patients’ oral health, we offer multiple forms of sedation. If oral sedation is used, an escort is required for you to be released from the care of the facility. 

Why do I need this treatment sooner rather than later?

Recession should always be treated as soon as possible to prevent any further attachment loss. We cannot predict how quickly recession will progress. As it worsens, treatments might not be as predictable. You may then need additional materials or procedures and the costs will increase significantly.

Periodontal disease will keep spreading and you will lose more bone around your teeth. Eventually extraction might be the only course of action. The bacterial accumulation and inflammation leads to bone loss, and possible infection and tooth loss .

If you have an infection or a vertical-fractured tooth, you need an extraction and a future implant.That condition will continue to worsen over time. The best course of action is to receive treatments as soon as possible for a more predictable outcome. 

If you are missing a tooth/teeth and do not replace it/them, the adjacent teeth or opposing teeth may shift, and their prognosis may worsen as well. 

What about my dental insurance?

Dr. Terrazzani is out-of-network. PeriOptimal Smile will provide the dental insurance codes to help you submit a claim to your insurance. You also have the option of contacting your insurance ahead of the treatments to get an idea of your coverage. For more extensive procedures, insurance companies might not cover all treatments, even if they are necessary for you.

It is Dr. Terrazzani’s responsibility to assist each patient in making independent decisions about their treatments, regardless of the insurance reimbursement schedule.