VIDEO -Hard or Soft Bone – What is Better for Dental Implants?

dental implant

Most people think bone is just bone!  Actually, in the mouth it can be as hard oak wood or as soft as Styrofoam!!! Your success with the dental implant procedure has got a lot to do with this.  The techniques of placing the implants into each type of bone is very different.  This video should help … Read more

Dental Implant CT Scan Video

lower overdenture abutments LOCATOR

The power of interactive CT cone beam scans in implant dentistry is amazing! It allows me to plan the surgery in advance.  I can see things that I could never see with traditional x-rays. This man from Glendale, California was missing all of his teeth and wore regular dentures. The CT (CAT) scan allowed the … Read more

Video – How Long Do Dental Implants Take to Heal?

how long do dental implants take to heal?

Dental implants can require some time to heal before they become integrated to your jawbone.  Teeth can be made on the implants on the same day that the implant is placed, or a few months later. It is quite variable.  Having a bone graft may or may not prolong that time. This video taken at … Read more

Sinus Bone Lifting – Internal

xray of missing tooth

There are two ways to “lift the sinus” if you are missing bone for an upper back tooth. Read this post first  and watch this sinus graft video to understand the two main techniques and understand why this procedure is needed. Internal Sinus Lift Procedure This procedure is used when the bone loss of the … Read more

Piezosurgery for Dental Implants and Bone Grafting

Panoramic xray of missing upper molars

Piezosurgery® is an exciting modality that enables me to cut bone without harming soft tissues. It is amazing. I have used it for 3 years now and it is just incredible.  It can cut bone, but it can't cut skin, gums, nerves, etc!  Unbelievable, but true. Piezosurgery utilizes high frequency ultrasonic vibrations—which allow the bone … Read more

Video – Sinus Lift Bone Graft for Dental Implants

sinus lift bone graft video

Sinus lift bone grafts are done when you need dental implants for your upper back teeth, but don't have enough bone. The procedure has been done since the mid 1970's. I was personally trained by the inventor of this procedure, Dr. Hilt Tatum This video is intended to give you some insight to why and … Read more

Digital X-rays During the Placement of Dental Implants

implant x-ray

I was at a dental meeting recently at USC Dental School with about 200 dentists that place dental implants.  The topic of x-rays during implant surgery came up…and I could not believe what I heard.

Some background information:
When placing an implant into the jawbone, it is necessary to take x-rays in between steps.  This allows me to guide the implant into an ideal location, which is extremely important.  Furthermore, taking x-rays during dental implant surgery allows me to see how deep I am.  The vital nerves, arteries, sinuses and bone depressions are at the deepest part of bone, so taking multiple x-rays adds safety and predictability to the procedure.  It does add time to the procedure, but does not increase your cost.

Here is an example of the process that I do for my patients to ensure good outcomes (follow the series of x-rays until the center implant is placed):

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The postion of the implant is checked and re-checked…perfect!

What I could not believe was the majority of the other dentists in attendance do not take x-rays along the way!!!!!!!!

The top two reasons were:

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