After tooth loss, decay, or damage, there’s a lot you may miss, like chewing your favorite foods or smiling in pictures.
While missing teeth can be a stressful problem, they’re also a common one. Our periodontist, Dr. Thiago Morelli , has a solution.
He places dental implants at our trusted Raleigh, NC, practice. Contact us to explore your candidacy.
Choosing a tooth replacement can feel overwhelming. Dr. Morelli starts by evaluating your bone and gum health, then builds a treatment plan around your needs, whether that’s a single implant, an implant-supported bridge or a full set of new teeth.
If you’re missing most or all of your teeth, full-arch restoration (often called All-on-4 or All-on-X) uses four to six implants to anchor a complete set of permanent teeth, restoring your bite and your confidence. A consultation is the first step to finding the right option for you.
We believe that excellent results start with excellent materials. Dr. Morelli primarily uses premium implants from BioHorizons and Straumann, and he can also place Nobel Biocare and Dentsply Sirona implants when they’re the better fit.
Each brand has its own strengths. Straumann offers a wide range of implant materials and designs, and BioHorizons is known for implants designed to support healthy gums and bone. Dr. Morelli will explain which option fits your needs at your consultation.
Our implant-supported restorations are also made from nothing but the best. We craft crowns, bridges, and dentures from materials like porcelain and zirconia, which are both prized for their durability and lifelike aesthetics. The restorations you receive from our Raleigh team will be as close to natural teeth as you can get.
Implants are one of the most versatile treatments offered by our periodontist. That’s because implants can support multiple kinds of dental restorations, like:
From decay to other damage, if you have a single tooth in need of a lifelike dental restoration, an implant can keep it secure.
If you are missing several teeth in a row, we can often place implants — where the outer, original teeth in the bridge are secured directly to the implants — resulting in a firm, secure fit over your gums.
Our focus goes beyond just placing the implants; we specialize in the complete health of your teeth’s supporting structures—the jawbone and gums.
To establish implant candidacy, our Raleigh, NC, dentistry practice uses advanced technology to scan your natural teeth, gums, and jawbone, including intra-oral scanning and cone beam computed tomography. We also capture measurements to create a surgical guide and a lifelike restoration.
Depending on your needs, Dr. Morelli may also recommend supplementary dental procedures. These might include extracting a tooth, periodontal care, bone grafting – all of which can be completed in-office. In some cases, you may also need time to heal.
When the day of your dental implant placement arrives, you’ll return to our Raleigh office. Although it’s not necessary for everyone, to make treatment as comfortable as possible we offer oral conscious sedation to take beforehand, or you may be calmed using IV sedation.
Once you’re fully at ease, Dr. Morelli will create a small incision in your gums. He’ll also make space in the bone below. Then, he’ll carefully place your titanium implant using a custom 3-D printed surgical guide for precise results.
An abutment, or connector piece, will be placed on top of each implant. Dr. Morelli may attach your abutment and restoration on the day of your implant procedure, or he may attach them after you heal.
The reason why dental implants are so successful long-term is due to osseointegration. This process allows your implant to fuse with your gum and jawbone, so that it remains securely in place for decades to come. Osseointegration takes about three to six months.
We send all scans to our very own in-house lab for restoration fabrication. When they’re ready, Dr. Morelli will attach your denture, crown, or bridge to the abutments, completing your beautiful new smile.
Dental implants are widely available, but who places them matters. Dr. Thiago Morelli is a board-certified periodontist, a specialist in the gums and jawbone that hold implants in place. He is one of only 52 examiners for the American Board of Periodontology, a former Director of Periodontology and Implantology at UNC Chapel Hill, and a Fellow of the International Team for Implantology.
What that means for you:
Patients come from Charlotte, the Triad and across the state for specialist implant care, unhurried appointments, and a doctor who teaches at UNC:
I drive from Charlotte to see this team. I appreciate them, because my experiences with every team member I interact with has been friendly. They focus on patient care. The doctor also teaches at the UNC dental school, so you know he is keeping up with the latest research. Mary does a thorough job with my perio cleanings and is very personable. My impression is they focus on quality, not quantity here. Some offices are like factories when the doctor does not take the time with the patient, so they can get to the next one. We’ve all experienced that. That’s not the case here.
– Andrew Jen, 5-Star Google Review
Many dentists only restore implants, so patients get referred elsewhere for surgery and wait longer to start. Dr. Morelli handles every step himself, from bone grafts and sinus lifts to implant placement, right here in our Raleigh office.
The best option depends on your oral health, specifically your bone volume and gum tissue. Common solutions include a single tooth implant for individual gaps, an implant-supported bridge for multiple missing teeth in a row, or full-arch restoration (All-on-X) for patients who have lost most or all of their natural teeth.
During your consultation, a periodontist uses 3D imaging to assess your jawbone density. If there is significant bone loss, procedures like bone grafting or sinus lifts can be performed to create a stable foundation for the titanium implant post.
All-on-4 is a revolutionary technique for patients with hopeless dentition. By strategically placing four to six implants throughout the arch, a specialist can secure a full set of permanent prosthetic teeth. This provides a more stable, natural-feeling alternative to traditional removable dentures.
While a traditional bridge requires grinding down adjacent healthy teeth, a single dental implant replaces the root of the missing tooth without affecting neighboring teeth. However, if multiple teeth are missing in a segment, an implant-supported bridge is often the most cost-effective and structurally sound choice.
Most patients return to work within 1–2 days. However, the process of osseointegration—where the bone fuses to the implant—typically takes 3 to 6 months. Once this process is complete, the final custom crown or bridge is permanently attached.
Most adults in good general health are candidates. Key factors include being a non-smoker (or willing to quit during healing) and having healthy gums. Even patients with “hopeless” teeth can often be restored to full function through a customized treatment plan at a specialized clinic like North Carolina Implants and Periodontics.
Every implant plan is different, so we’ll give you a personalized cost estimate at your consultation, before any treatment begins. We offer several ways to make it affordable:
Questions about cost? Call (919) 510-8888 and ask for Diane, our Finance Manager.
Appointments for periodontal maintenance do not replace regular dental checkups. If your dentist detects gum disease, they may refer you to Dr. Morelli for specialized care. If Dr. Morelli detects tooth decay during a maintenance visit, you will be referred to your general dentist for treatment. While Dr. Morelli is a specialist who treats periodontal concerns, your general dentist is primarily responsible for your overall dental health.
The interval between your supportive periodontal care visits might be scheduled every few weeks to every six months. Everyone’s situation is different. The frequency of your supportive care visits will be influenced by your periodontal disease, the treatment you’ve received, your response to treatment, your personal commitment to your care, and other factors.
Your visit to our Raleigh, NC, periodontal office may include a discussion of any changes in your health history, examination of your mouth tissues for abnormal changes, measurement of the depth of pockets around your teeth, removal of bacterial plaque and tartar, analysis on the way your teeth fit together when you bite, and more.
Areas We Serve: Raleigh, Cary, Durham, Apex, Wake Forest, and the greater Triangle communities.
🏆 Voted Best Periodontist in Raleigh (2026 Midtown Magazine Diamond Awards)
📜 Board-Certified & National Examiner: 1 of only 52 Board Examiners serving the American Board of Periodontology
🎓 Academic Leader: Adjunct Professor (and former Director of Periodontology & Implantology) at UNC Chapel Hill School of Dentistry
🔬 Published Researcher: NIH-funded researcher and author on dental implants and regenerative medicine
🏅 Diplomate & ITI Fellow: American Academy of Periodontology & International Team for Implantology
“Dr. Morelli brings university-level precision, cutting-edge technology, and compassionate care to patients across Raleigh, Cary, Durham, and Chapel Hill.”
Take the next steps to better oral health. Request a consultation by contacting us online or by calling our Raleigh, NC, practice today:
