New Hanover County · Since 1987
Dental Implants in Wrightsville Beach, NC
A dental implant replaces the root of a missing tooth with a titanium post, then a crown on top of it. It is the only replacement that keeps the jawbone working the way a natural tooth does.
- Three doctors, one location
- Sedation available
- Most major plans accepted
- Written estimates before treatment
What to know about implants
When a tooth comes out, the bone that held it starts to shrink. That is why a face changes shape years after a loss, and why a bridge or partial that fit well in 2019 rocks by 2024. An implant stops that process because the post loads the bone every time you chew.
Patients from Wrightsville Beach
Wrightsville Beach has the highest household incomes in the region and a resident base that treats a good smile as part of the package.
Patients here tend to want the durable answer rather than the quick one, and they ask good questions about materials and longevity. We are happy to have that conversation in detail.
Harbour Island and the Banks Channel side send us most of our Wrightsville Beach patients, and the drawbridge is the only real variable in the trip.
Summer traffic on Eastwood Road is worth planning around; a morning appointment is a different journey from a four o'clock one in July.
The island's year-round population is small, so almost everyone here already drives into Wilmington for medical appointments.
We see patients from across Wrightsville Beach and the surrounding area, including Johnnie Mercer's Pier, the Loop, Banks Channel and the 28480 ZIP code.
New Hanover County is the built-out core of the region, growing around one percent a year, with roughly 21 percent of residents over 65 and the highest concentration of employer dental coverage in southeastern North Carolina.
Larger cases are scheduled around your calendar rather than ours, and we will consolidate appointments where the clinical sequence allows it.
Twenty minutes over the drawbridge puts you in a chair with a doctor who does this work every week, not a cosmetic clinic that sees veneers twice a year.
You may be a candidate if
- You are missing one tooth, several teeth, or all of them
- A bridge or partial denture has started to move, click or trap food
- You want to stop wearing something removable
- You have enough bone, or are willing to have it built up first
- You are healthy enough for a routine outpatient procedure
Your treatment, start to finish
- Consultation and 3D scanWe look at bone, bite and gum health, then show you the scan on screen and talk through what is realistic.
- Extraction or grafting, if neededSometimes a failing tooth comes out and the site is grafted the same day. Sometimes we place immediately.
- Implant placementA single implant takes under an hour. You are numb, and sedation is available if you want it.
- HealingThree to six months while bone grows onto the post. You leave with a temporary so nobody sees a gap.
- Final crownWe take records, the lab builds the crown to match your other teeth, and it goes on.
Afterwards
Most patients take ibuprofen for a day or two and go back to work the next morning. Once the final crown is on, you brush and floss it like a tooth. The maintenance that matters is your cleaning schedule, since the gum around an implant needs the same attention as gum around a root.
Follow-up visits are short and we will schedule them at the start or end of the day if that works better around your week.
What it costs
Implant cost depends on how many you need, whether a tooth has to come out first, and whether the site needs bone grafting. Some plans cover part of the restoration even when they exclude the implant itself. We give you a written number before you commit to anything, and we go through financing at the consultation.
We can sequence larger cases across two benefit years where the clinical situation allows it, which puts two annual maximums against the same plan of treatment.
In their own words
Hear from Dr. Barry Frazelle
Dr. Frazelle on why the injection is nothing to dread, and a cheap whitening habit he gives patients.
Questions we get asked
How long does a dental implant last?
The post itself is designed to be permanent, and implants placed decades ago are still in service. The crown on top is the part that eventually wears, usually somewhere past the fifteen year mark.
Does getting an implant hurt?
Placement is done under local anesthetic and most people describe it as easier than the extraction that preceded it. Soreness for two or three days is normal. Sedation is available if the idea of the appointment is the hard part.
How far is your office from Wrightsville Beach?
About 10 miles, or roughly 20 minutes via Eastwood Road (US-74) over the Heide Trask Drawbridge. We are at 1301 Physicians Dr in Wilmington, with parking at the door.
Do you see patients from Wrightsville Beach?
Regularly. Wrightsville Beach is part of our core service area in New Hanover County, and twenty minutes over the drawbridge puts you in a chair with a doctor who does this work every week, not a cosmetic clinic that sees veneers twice a year.
What are your hours?
Monday through Thursday, 8:00am to 5:00pm, and Friday, 8:00am to 12:00pm. Outside those hours, leave a message or use the appointment request form and we will come back to you with the first available time.
Dental Implants · Wrightsville Beach, NC
You have probably been told several different things about this.
Bring the opinions you have already been given. We will look at your scan with you and say which parts we agree with.
- Three doctors, 50+ years of combined experience
- Implant surgery and restoration in one building
- Sedation available for longer appointments
- Written, phased treatment plans with costs attached
Worried it is too much work at your age? Health matters far more than the number, and we will tell you if we think a smaller plan serves you better.
Request an appointment
We reply the next business day.
Please do not include Protected Health Information. For anything urgent, call (910) 762-0958.
