Hybridge dental implants

Hybridge dental implants
02/11/2008
By: Diana Palotas
News Ten Now

These days, Kurt Hertel wants everyone to look at his teeth.

ÏIÌm happier now because I can smile,Ó Hertel said.

A winning grin wasnÌt something Hertel could smile about until now. His dental troubles started when he was a kid.

ÏOur dentist had a kind of fill Îem and drill Îem kind of philosophy,Ó said Hertel.

After a while, there was nothing left to fill or drill. He has his first tooth removed when he was in his 20s.

ÏIt was like dominoes,Ó Hertel said.

Decades of work and tens of thousands of dollars later, Hertel still wasnÌt smiling about what was in his mouth.

Hybridge dental implants
A dental facility in Rochester has come up with an alternative to dentures. Our Diana Palotas has more.

ÏIÌve got a mess here,Ó Hertel said. ÏIÌve got partials. IÌve got bridges. IÌve got crowns. All my teeth root canalled.Ó

Hertel turned to dental implants. Specialists at the Elmwood Dental Group in Rochester designed the Hybridge. ItÌs a cross between a denture and a bridge that can be implanted in just three weeks. The Hybridge is made of resin and it permanently supported on five or six dental implants and can be removed for cleaning or repair.

ThereÌs nothing out there that can hurt the Hybridge that canÌt be fixed within 24 hours, so patients donÌt have to go long without their smile.

ÏWe always say our success rate is greater than 99 percent in ten years,Ó said Dr. Frank Lamar. ÏThe likelihood that patient has to do dentistry again is very smallÓ

The Hybridge runs about $15,000 for an entire plate of teeth.

Hertel says the feel of his set of teeth is priceless.

ÏTheyÌre sturdy and secure and pretty and I am very please,Ó Hertel said.