A dental implant is a small titanium screw-like fixture that serves as the replacement for the root portion of a missing natural tooth. The dental implant is placed in the bone of the upper or lower jaw. After the placement, the implant has to fuse with the bone (titanium is one of the best materials to integrate with natural bone) which can take a couple of weeks. Treatment time will vary depending on your situation. It is possible to get well functioning and esthetic looking teeth within a few days. In some cases it may be necessary to wait a longer time period before finishing the restoration in order to obtain the best results. Dental implants can be used to replace a single lost tooth or a number. Implant supported replacement teeth look, feel and function like natural teeth, they preserve the integrity of a facial structure and improve the look and function of a jaw. Once the screw-like fixture is safe, a dentist will screw in an actual dental implant that is made to look and replace natural tooth. Basically anyone who is missing one or more of their teeth due to injury, disease, or decay may be a candidate for dental implants. Sometimes if there's a number of teeth missing dental implants in conjunction with a crown or bridge can replace them. The rule of thumb is that if you're healthy enough to have a tooth extracted, you're probably healthy enough to receive dental implants. Anesthesia and patient sedation are used to eliminate any discomfort at the time of the procedure so there is virtually no pain during the process of implant insertion.There may be some discomfort after the procedure but this is usually minimal and can be significantly reduced - or eliminated - with a help of painkillers.