Prosthodontics

A beautiful smile is important to your health, hygiene, confidence, and self-esteem. At our office, we can help you have the most attractive, natural-looking smile possible through advanced prosthodontic care. Prosthodontics, or prosthetic dentistry, is an area of dentistry that concentrates on the aesthetic restoration and replacement of teeth to their proper form and function.

As a comprehensive dental practice, we offer our patients a wide range of prosthodontic treatments. Prosthodontic care focuses on complete oral rehabilitation and treatment of numerous dental conditions, such as:

• TMJ/TMD
• Traumatic injuries to the mouth’s structures
• Congenital or birth anomalies to teeth
• Snoring and sleep disorders
• Oral cancer reconstruction and continuing care

Prosthodontic Treatment Options

In order to restore your smile, we may recommend the following prosthodontic treatments:

Bridges

A bridge may be used to replace missing teeth, help maintain the shape of your face, and alleviate stress on your bite. A bridge replaces missing teeth with artificial teeth, looks great, and literally bridges the gap where one or more teeth may have been. Your bridge can be made from gold, alloys, porcelain, or a combination of these materials and is bonded onto surrounding teeth for support.

Crowns

A tooth may need a crown if the tooth has previous root canal treatment or is broken, has large fillings, or has suffered extensive decay. Essentially, a crown is a cap that fits over the tooth above the gum line—it becomes a new, strong outer surface. An excellent crown will help save a tooth for many years of protection, aesthetics, and function.

The crown preparation is completed and temporized the same day, and the final crown is cemented once it is fabricated from the lab. Our crowns are created by our expert lab, made of the finest materials, seamlessly balanced for your bite, and esthetically matched to the rest of the teeth.

Dr. Kari has provided crowns to hundreds of patients throughout the New Hudson community for more than seven years. She and our team take our time during treatment to achieve clinical excellence and efficiency. To learn how crowns can restore your smile to ideal health and function, schedule an appointment at Kari Family Dentistry!

Dental Implants

An implant is an artificial tooth made of metal and porcelain that looks just like your natural tooth. It's composed of two main parts: one is the titanium implant body that takes the place of the missing root, and the second part is the tooth-colored crown that is cemented on top of the implant. With dental implants, you can smile confidently knowing that no one will ever suspect you have a replacement tooth.

Dentures

Dentures are natural-looking replacement teeth made by your dentist that are removable. There are two types of dentures: full and partial. Full dentures are given to patients when all of the natural teeth have been removed. Partial dentures are attached to a metal frame that is connected to your natural teeth and are used to fill in where permanent teeth have been removed.

Fillings

A filling is often used to repair a tooth that is affected by wear, decay, cracks, or fractures. The decayed or affected portion of the tooth is removed and replaced with a filling, which can be made up of many different materials, such as gold, porcelain, composite, ceramic, and plastic compound.

Occlusal Disease Treatment

Occlusal disease is caused by a misalignment between the teeth of the upper and lower dental arches, also called malocclusion. If left untreated, occlusal disease and can damage your teeth, the supporting bones and gums around your teeth, temporomandibular joints, and the jaw muscles you use for chewing. Many people dismiss excessive or abnormally accelerated tooth wear as natural aging or wearing of teeth, however, prosthodontic treatment can alleviate the pain and discomfort caused by occlusal disease.

Veneers

Veneers are thin, custom-made shells made from tooth-colored materials, such as porcelain, designed to cover the front side of your teeth. Veneers are natural in appearance and a great option for patients who want to make adjustments to the look and feel of their smile.