Dr. Srikanth Cherukadu

Dental Implants

Lifelike Teeth Replacement With Dental Implants

Dental implants are the ideal solution when one or more teeth need to be replaced. A dental implant replaces the root of a tooth in the jawbone, providing a solid foundation for attachment of a permanent crown, bridge or denture. Implants replicate the look, feel and function of natural teeth so well that most people cannot tell the difference between them and their natural teeth! Dental Implants Dr. Sri has over a decade of experience restoring patients’ mouths to full function and beauty with dental implants. He uses the latest dental implant technologies and techniques to make the treatment comfortable, efficient, and long-lasting.

Knowledgeable Implant Expert

Dr. Sri is a dental implant expert who has earned the title of Associate Fellow of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry. As of 2021, he is one of only 750 dentists to have earned this designation, having received over 300 hours of advanced training in implant dentistry and passed a grueling series of examinations to determine proficiency in surgical and prosthetic dental implant techniques. To date, Dr. Sri has completed over 700 hours of continuing education in implant dentistry, and he has studied under many of the leaders in the field, including Dr. Michael Pikos and Dr. Istvan Urban.

What Are Dental Implants?

Dental implants are the most exciting and valuable tooth replacement option we have in dentistry today. Implants can be used in a wide variety of ways to replace one or more missing teeth, and they allow you to chew as well as natural teeth. Dental implants attach to the jawbone through a process called osseointegration. The titanium implant body, which mimics the shape of a tooth root, anchors into the upper or lower jawbone in the precise position your dentist chooses for optimum function. During the healing process, the jawbone grows into the ridges of the implant body and locks it into place. This creates a secure connection to the jawbone. This firm attachment of the dental implant to the jawbone allows us to use it as an anchor for many different types of tooth replacements, including single tooth crowns, bridges, partials, and full dentures. Because the implant body is actually inside the jawbone, the restorations we create emerge from the gums, giving the most natural and best cosmetic appearance to the tooth replacement. Implants function as closely to natural teeth as possible because their support comes only from the jawbone, not from neighboring teeth. Whether you are missing one tooth or all of your teeth, dental implants are the best option to replace them.

High-Tech 3D Planning

Dr. Sri takes the time necessary to properly evaluate the patient’s condition and plan out every part of the treatment using the latest dental technologies. With his cone beam CT scanner, he takes a 3D X-ray of the patient’s entire oral anatomy—this reveals the density and quality of jawbone in all areas and the location of the nerves and other vital structures. He then uses this data in special software to simulate the surgical placement of the implants in advance of the actual procedure to ensure there will not be any surprises.

Our Implant Services

We offer many options for replacing teeth using dental implants, including the following:

Single Tooth Implants

A dental implant is, without question, the best possible replacement of a single missing tooth. Why is it the best? Because it is the closest we can come to a natural tooth. A dental implant replacing a missing tooth consists of three parts:
  1. The implant body – The implant body is the tooth root replacement. It anchors into the jawbone, allowing what is built onto it to emerge out of the gums naturally.
  2. The abutment – Abutments come in many forms. The abutment’s job is to connect the tooth-shaped crown above the gums to the implant body below the gums. The abutment connects to the implant body with a screw.
  3. The implant crown – Similar to a crown on a natural tooth, an implant crown completely covers the abutment and appears to emerge from the gums. The crown attaches to the abutment only and NOT to any neighboring teeth.
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Dental Implant Bridge

A common misunderstanding of dental implants is the assumption that you must have one dental implant per tooth replacement. This is false, and that is good news! If you are missing multiple teeth in a row, you have the option of replacing them with a dental implant bridge. Read More

Fixed Full-Mouth Dental Implants

Fixed full-mouth dental implants give you a way to replace all of your missing teeth without having to wear something removable. Many people do not want a denture that requires removal every night, no matter how well it fits. The opposite of removable, in dentistry, is “fixed.” A fixed dental restoration is not removable by the patient. A normal, healthy adult mouth typically contains 28 teeth (assuming the four wisdom teeth have already been removed). Replacing these with dental implants does not have to utilize 28 dental implants. We commonly use a combination of single tooth dental implants and dental implant bridges, or a treatment called New Teeth in One Day to replace all the teeth in this manner. Read More

Implant-Supported Dentures

Millions of Americans have no teeth at all. Many of these patients wear dentures to replace their missing teeth, and are unhappy with the way the dentures fit and function. Dental implants have revolutionized traditional dentures by providing firm anchors for the denture to attach to. We stabilize dentures using a minimum of two dental implants in the jawbone. The connection between the dental implant and the denture is through a specialty abutment called a “locator.” The locator has a corresponding receiver on the inner surface of the denture. This allows the denture to snap firmly into place and stay securely in place throughout any normal function. Read More

Bone Grafting For Dental Implants

One of the requirements for using a dental implant to replace a missing tooth is the presence of enough healthy jawbone. When you lose a tooth, the jawbone in that area begins to shrink because it no longer has a tooth to support. In some cases, the bone shrinks to a width and height that cannot support a dental implant. This does not prevent you from replacing your missing tooth with an implant—it simply requires some preparation and building up of the shrunken bone. The purpose of a bone graft is to improve the missing tooth site so that you can have an implant restoration. It transforms an area of bone that was insufficient into a healthy foundation for the dental implant. There are many different types of bone grafting, but they all serve the same purpose: to improve the long-term success of your dental implant. Read More

Sinus Lift For Dental Implants

The maxillary sinus cavities are air-filled spaces in the head, just above your upper back teeth and behind your cheekbones. For many people, the roots of the upper teeth extend up into the sinus cavities. Because the upper jawbone’s purpose is to hold teeth, when teeth are missing, the bone shrinks, allowing the sinus cavity to get larger. This is a problem when you want to replace that missing tooth with a dental implant. Dental implants require a minimum length for strength and stability. If there is not enough jawbone to support the correct length of implant, we perform a procedure called a sinus lift. The sinus cavity is lined with a very thin membrane that separates the jawbone from the sinus cavity and its resident bacteria. During a sinus lift, your dentist prepares the jawbone site for the dental implant and then “lifts” the sinus membrane to place bone grafting material and the implant itself. Read More

New Teeth In One Day

We are committed to offering our patients a wide variety of treatment options. We know that some patients have experienced extensive dental disease and tooth loss. We believe this should not prevent you from having a stable, beautiful smile that functions almost as well as natural teeth. Our solution for many of these cases is called New Teeth in One Day. New Teeth in One Day is a replacement of an entire dental arch of teeth that is supported by four to six implants in the jawbone. New Teeth in One Day functions well on both the upper jaw and the lower jaw. It is like a bridge in that it attaches to the dental implants and is not removable; it is like a denture in that it replaces all of the teeth in the arch. Read More