Nanotechnology in Dental Implants- Think Big, by Thinking Small
PLANO TEXAS - Science and technology are growing exponentially thanks to both the technical prowess and unrivaled imagination of human intelligence. What sounded like fiction in a book 50 years ago can be an applied in reality today. So, when you hear someone talk about arranging molecules of an atom you are thinking it sounds like sheer science fiction. However, we have been able to do it since the 1980s. Thanks to hyper precision and better microscopes, we can manipulate our world in ways that we could only dream of 5 decades prior. Both creative and destructive. So, how does something like that translate to dental implants? What makes it work, and what is in store for the future with dental implants in Plano, Texas and the rest of the world? We'll find out.
What is Nanotechnology?
For those who aren't a fan of sci-fi or work in any particular scientific field, nanotechnology is "science, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale." What is the nanoscale, you ask? It is one of the smallest forms of measurement there is. How small? Small enough to measure atoms.
According to Nano.gov, "One nanometer is a billionth of a meter or 10-9 of a meter. Here are a few illustrative examples:
· There are 25,400,000 nanometers in an inch
· A sheet of newspaper is about 100,000 nanometers thick
· On a comparative scale, if a marble were a nanometer, then one meter would be the size of the Earth".
It all boils down to the basic high school knowledge that everything is made up of atoms. Without them, matter does not and could not exist. But because of how small it is, we can't exactly see it with the naked eye. But that doesn't make them impossible to see at all. Thanks to scanning tunneling microscopes and Atomic Force Microscopes we could see them better, and understand how to manipulate them. That was around 30 years ago, and this type of technological field is still growing today.
How We Apply Nanotechnology to Dental Implants
What determines the success or failure of a dental implant are several factors that include bone healing, osteointegration (the growth of the bone around the implant), and the presence of an infection. Nanotechnology can improve all of those things, according to Techilabs, a website that publishes articles on scientific market research. Not only that, but it has also been responsible for an increase in successful implants. Combined with dental awareness worldwide, it is playing a part in creating a snowball effect of increased demand for dental implants all over the world.
"Nanomaterials influence the osteointegration process and remarkably reduce the chances of infection. As per a report by the American Academy of Implant Dentistry, the country-wide market in the U.S. alone is witnessing 500,000 new cases of dental implants per year. A similar surge has been observed across the world and as a result, the global Nanotechnology in Dental Implants Market is expected to expand at a healthy growth rate during the forecast period of 2016 to 2024."
This technology, can not only fuse better to the bone and decrease the chance of infection, but it can work with (CAD) computer-aided dentistry to provide a wider array of options for patients. "For example, ceramic crowns offer better aesthetics, while metal-fused ceramic crown offers greater strength."
So, not only is nanotechnology making dental implants have a low failure rate, but it is also assisting in ways of making those implants stronger, more natural-looking and outright reliable. So, what is stopping it from changing the dentistry practice as we know it?
Cost Issues with Dental Implants
Unfortunately, the introduction of new technology into any medicinal field means that there is a funding requirement involved. And if you need more funding to make your new dental implant technology you either have to charge a lot for it from the patient or bill insurance through the reimbursement model.
Insurance companies are not exactly fans of reimbursing for something they don't see as a necessity. They also don't care to pay for something that they don't understand. A lot of digital health products and newer forms of medicine usually don't see reimbursement by health insurance companies. Whether it is for a dental implant in Plano, Texas with imaging technology or an A.I. company, healthcare insurers feel like there is too much of a risk. They don't want to reimburse a procedure or a company that is not tried and true to their current system.
Unless these nanotech dental implant providers can prove its rate of success, how cost-effective it is and how much of a necessity it is for their patient, it will be a while before it will take off.