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Our Practice
Wilshire Smile Studio is one of the rare dental practices in the Hollywood-Beverly Hills area with a top oral surgeon as part of the team. This enables us to provide many oral health services without having to refer patients out, which would put them beyond our oversight and standards.
Our oral surgeon is Dr. Nariman Saadat, who graduated from the University of California Los Angeles with a B.S. in microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics, then earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) there. He is one of the very few Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (OMS) to have gone on to receive an M.D.
The Best Replacement
An oral surgeon is qualified to do many procedures beyond the skills of most general dentists, especially dental implants when multiple teeth are missing or bone grafts are needed.
Whether you have lost one or more teeth in an accident or because of inadequate brushing and flossing that has led to a gum infection that pulls away the support for teeth, the best replacement are dental implants. These are a type of screw made of biocompatible metals like zirconia or titanium which replace the roots of the teeth.
But if the teeth have not yet fallen out, Dr. Saadat will need to first do an extraction, then the sockets will need to heal before the implants are inserted and allowed to integrate with the jawbone for several months. These are then attached to crowns made of dental porcelain that looks exactly like the missing teeth and the shade matched to the remaining ones (or perhaps all of them receiving a whiter shade).
Implants
An implant, with proper care, can be a permanent solution that also prevents the misalignment of the bite that would otherwise occur, as the mouth tries to adjust by causing neighboring teeth to lean towards the gap. This will lead to other teeth becoming loose. Dentures are usually attached to the gums, not anchored into the jawbone, do not stop this loss of bone, which is why they need to be refitted every few years.
An oral surgeon can replace a full set of teeth in the lower or upper arch, a process that would take many months to complete. An alternative to inserting many individual implants would be the All-on-4 platform, on which the crowns for each of the missing teeth would sit, but it only needs to be anchored into the jaw by four implants, so the process is less expensive and can be done more quickly.
However, not everyone can immediately qualify for implants. These include those who are heavy smokers, have advanced osteoporosis or diabetes, untreated cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, or have undergone radiation to the head in the past five years.
If there is significant loss of jawbone in the area where an implant is needed, Dr. Saadat would first need to place a bone graft, which can be made of bone from your own body, a cadaver, or a cow, or the option of biocompatible synthetic bone. This also takes several months to integrate.
Your Options
If you wonder whether having multiple implants would be a painful process, there is no need to worry, since Dr. Saadat can provide many sedation options, including:
- Topical numbing agents and local injections.
- Nitrous oxide, with can be breathed in with a mask, causing the patient to become relaxed and less anxious.
- Benzodiazepine, a pain medication available in a mild form that targets the brain’s fear center. The stronger version produces drowsiness and sometimes sleep. Either one would require someone to drive you home after the procedure.
- Intravenous (IV) drip, which definitely would cause you to sleep through the surgery (it is not really necessary for an implant, but is an option).
Issues You May Be Experiencing
There are many other issues that an oral surgeon should address, among them:
Sleep apnea, a dangerous condition that causes breathing to stop during sleep and may require removal of excess tissue that is blocking the airway.
TMJ Disorder, which the hinges that connect the lower jaw to the skull (the temporomanidibular joints) become dislocated and sometimes require surgery to correct a bite.
Unequal Jaws, that have grown differently and cause difficulty eating, breathing, and talking.
Full mouth reconstruction, cases where a variety of serious problems, from severely crooked teeth to multiple missing ones, need to be addressed comprehensively.
Contact Us
If you are looking for a top-rated oral surgeon in Los Angeles, trust the expertise of Dr. Nariman Saadat and the experienced team at Los Angeles Oral Surgeons. Schedule an appointment today or call us at (323) 612-1201.
