Smile counsel

Health Editor Barry Nelson meets the North-East dentist who is offering free treatment to the right person.

MOST people these days have heard of dental implants, but how many realise that they have been around since the Eighties? Mike Heads, an award-winning private dentist based in Stockton, first became intrigued by the possibilities presented by this new technology when he spent some time in the US nearly 30 years ago.

He is one of a number of North-East professionals prepared to offer his services free to the winner of a venture called Dream Image North-East.

Launched in November, 18 businesses, including Mike’s dental practice in Fairfield, got together to challenge the people of the North- East to nominate someone who deserves a fresh start in life.

The idea is that the Dream Image alliance of professions – which includes a plastic surgeon, a hairstylist and a beauty therapist – will offer the right person a dream makeover worth thousands of pounds.

Mike says up to 80 per cent of his time in the surgery is spent on dental implants.

“People in this country still think dental implants are a new thing, but they were around in the US in the Eighties,” he says.

His links with the US dental profession began after he won a national award from the British Dental Association when he was still in his 20s.

“As part of the prize, I was able to spend some time as a guest of the American Dental Association. I started getting an insight into this new technology and it is something that has intrigued me ever since.”

Implants – which can cost thousands of pounds per tooth – are still not generally available on the NHS, but Mike believes they have a great future.

“The great thing about implants is that you are not pratting about doing a few fillings.

That is not something life-changing, but putting some implants into someone’s mouth can have a massive positive impact on their life.”

The winner of Dream Image North East, who will be chosen by members of the public early this year, is likely to benefit from some form of dental work, even if it doesn’t involve installing implants.

“I would hazard a guess that the winner will need some form of cosmetic treatment for their teeth,” says Mike.

“This could by anything from tooth whitening, to changing the colour of their fillings, to repairing broken teeth and straightening crooked teeth. They may have old crowns that look unsightly that could be replaced.”

In more extreme cases, Mike says he is ready to give someone a completely new look.

“Someone could come to me with a full set of dentures and be fitted out with fixed teeth top and bottom.”

The only patients who are not able to have dental implants are children and young adults who are still growing.

The growing process must have stopped before someone can be assessed for implants, says Mike.

“Sometime people are told that they can’t have implants because they don’t have enough bone. I would say that by using bone augmentation techniques there is always a solution.”

People can get confused about the term dental implant but, in essence, the process involves implanting a small screw or cylinder into the patient’s jawbone, allowing this replacement “root” to support one or two false teeth.

In time, these implants fuse with the patient’s jawbone through a natural process called osseointegration. After a period of healing, the patient returns to have the replacement tooth or teeth fixed to the new root.

Apart from directly replacing missing teeth, implants can be used to anchor bridges or dentures.

“If you lose one tooth, your dentist would put in one implant. If you have got three or four missing together you would put in one at either end of the gap and put in a bridge. In general, you need four to six implants for the upper and lower jaw,” says Mike.

Some people prefer to have fixed teeth while others can have dentures, which can be clipped to an implant for ease of cleaning.

Dental implants can also improve the look of the face, protect other teeth and help to stimulate bone growth in the jaw.

“Essentially, our aim is to give somebody back a functional set of teeth that look good.

People have to be able to eat, to speak and to drink. If you have too many gaps or ill-fitting dentures your eating suffers, your speech isn’t as good and your confidence can be affected,”

he says.

“We try to make people feel comfortable and confident, so that when they smile, other people think what a nice set of teeth.”

■ The closing date for nominations for the Dream Image makeover is January 14. The winner will be announced at an event at a five-star North-East hotel later this year.

You can nominate yourself, or someone you feel is deserving for the Dream Image makeover. Nominees must be 21. Go to dreamimagenortheast.co.uk or pick up an application form from the offices of The Northern Echo.