New innovations in dentistry are being discovered on a daily basis. Now with one of these new discoveries people with missing teeth can have their smile replaced in under a hour.

A new technique called F.I.R.S.T. (Fabricated Implant Restoration and Surgical Technique) was developed by Dr. Todd E. Shatkin of Buffalo New York. With the use of his technique patients with one or more missing teeth can feel confident again while smiling, speaking, or eating.

Dr. Shatkin's technique is very easy and straight forward. Here is a rundown of what the patient should expect during the process of his technique.

First, the patient would come to the office for a consultation visit to see whether or not mini implants can be beneficial for tooth replacement. If the patient is determined to be a viable candidate for mini implants impressions are taken of the patients bite. The impressions are sent to a dental laboratory and models are made for the laboratory doctor to determine where the implants should be placed in the patients bone. After consultation of the laboratory doctor the patients model is processed to make a surgical stent. You might ask what a surgical stent is... A surgical stent is a guide or template that fits over your teeth and gums to help the doctor guide the drill and place the implant with precision. Upon completion of the stent the patients crown or bridge is fabricated. The crown or bridge is fabricated to fit perfectly onto the mini dental implant after it has been placed in the bone. The crown or bridge are sent to the dentist's office ready for placement. The patient can now return to the office for the simple and easy procedure. A small amount of local anesthesia is used where the implant is to be placed. The surgical stent is placed over the area of the missing tooth for precision, then the dentist drills a small pilot hole to guide the implant into place. The mini implant is then placed in the pilot hole and screwed into place. After placement of the implant the crown or bridge is then cemented into place. The dentist will check your bite to make sure it is correct, Things should be perfect and you can now smile, eat, and speak with confidence once again.

Benefits of mini dental implants:

• priced less than conventional implants
• no repeat visits to the dentist
• mini implants are placed in about an hour
• smile, eat, and speak with confidence the same day!

Here is a link with more information on the F.I.R.S.T. Technique...