You don’t need to live with missing or damaged teeth. Jean Forsyth is a petite, beautifully groomed woman with a lively mind and a witty and engaging sense of humour. She has an abiding interest in people and keeps close tabs on what’s happening in her home town of Thorold and in the world at large. Yet through the years, she has been losing something dear to her - most of her natural teeth. And it’s not surprising when you know that she is 90 years of age. Today, you wouldn’t realize her teeth have been a problem, for she now has implanted teeth that look natural and have given her back her confidence to socialize with friends and family. “I was a reared in a time when if you lost a tooth, you lost it and there was nothing you could do about it,” she says. “Today, that doesn’t happen and even at my age I want to be able to eat and to look good.” As a supervisor with the Niagara Regional Health Unit when she retired 30 years ago, Jean had always stressed practising good health habits, and dental health is a major part of that, she says. Even though care of her teeth was a priority, she began to have problems with some and had them replaced with a bridge. But as time went on, that was not enough. “This is a lady who has taken excellent care of herself, but the process of aging had caused most of her teeth to be removed,” says Jean’s dentist, Dr. Thomas Pekar. “She was not enjoying the quality of life she still wanted and wasn’t able to interact and socialize with people with confidence.” With only a few natural teeth on the bottom, Jean wanted something done soon, and talked over the situation with Dr. Pekar. A complete lower denture was out of the question, as it would not remain stable. The preferred option was to have dental implants, which would anchor a partial denture and look very much like her own teeth. Only two implants would be needed to stabilize the partial denture, and complement the bridgeshe would retain at the top. It was a simple procedure, says Jean and one she is delighted with. With temporary fittings while her new permanent teeth were being made, she was able to cope well. And since the implants have been installed, she has had no problems at all, she says, with a big smile to prove her point. “Implants mean you don’t have to live with the embarrassment, discomfort and inconvenience caused by damaged, missing or poorly shaped teeth,” Dr. Pekar points out. “They also do away with problems often caused by loose dentures, such as sores, facial aches and clicking that hinders speaking and eating.” The procedure is quick, done in a day or even several hours and it works well for single or multiple teeth. Dental implants give security, comfort and the appearance of permanent teeth. You can’t do better than that!