Dental implants are the most natural way to restore missing teeth. They distribute the forces back to the bone where they naturally belong. This is in contrast to partial dentures or bridgework that places the force of the missing tooth on the neighboring teeth, leading to a higher risk to their damage and or loss. As well, the bone where the missing tooth is will continue to shrink away with time. This leads to the loss of bony support on the neighboring teeth adding further risk to their future. The placement of dental implants will actually stop this “”bone shrinking”” process and preserve, not damage the neighboring teeth.