Thinking Of Improving Your Smile With Dental Implants?

Do you want to improve your smile and are considering dental implants? Then read on to learn what to expect before, during and after dental implant surgery.

Dental implants are not a quick process because your mouth and jawbone must be prepared to withstand your implants for a long time. Dentists require the patient to have adequate bone density in your jaw before doing the procedure. 

If your jawbone is not dense enough, then you might get bone grafting to strengthen your jaw. This is required because if you have a soft jawbone, it will not support the implants for a long time. Your surgeon will take bone from another place in your body to put into your jaw. Depending on how much support you need, the bone grafting can take anywhere from days to months to finish since your jaw needs time to regrow bone mass. If you need little bone grafting, the procedure can take place on the day of your tooth implant surgery.

In order to prepare for your surgery, you need to have good oral health. Your dentist will give you pre-surgery instructions, which may include eating a healthy breakfast on the day of surgery, using a special antibacterial mouthwash, and they will make sure you have a ride to and from the surgery.

Most oral surgeons will use either a local anesthesia or another type of sedative to make sure you do not feel any pain during surgery. After administering anesthesia, your surgeon will make small incisions in your mouth; they look like small flaps that expose the bone needed to fuse the implants in your mouth. Using a drill, your surgeon will create the room needed to implant the new tooth. Since dental implants are comprised of a crown, abutment and titanium screw, your dentist will fix the screw in the empty space. Once the screw is in, your jaw will need time to grow and fuse with the screw. After the regrowth process, your dentist will add the abutment with the screw. The abutment keeps your new tooth in place. Your gums will need time to heal and strengthen. Once your gums heal, your dentist will take teeth impressions to make sure your implants fit securely and naturally. The last step is getting your natural looking tooth onto the abutment. Depending on how many teeth are getting implanted, the process can take anywhere from weeks to several months to finish.

After surgery, you will experience some degree of discomfort. Some common symptoms are minor bruising, pain at the implant site, gum and face swelling, or slight bleeding. Your dentist may prescribe a pain medication to relieve the pain. Be aware if your pain worsens over time, contact your dentist ASAP.

Aftercare is really important for a healthy recovery. Your dentist will give you an aftercare guide with instructions that may include avoiding hard and crunchy foods, opt for soft foods instead, continue daily brushing and flossing, having regular check-ups, and using antibacterial mouth rinse.

Please be diligent with your aftercare because if you are not, then you may experience the following problems, your gums may become infected near the surgical site, possible bone loss near the surgical site, the implant may not completely fuse to the bone,  or your body may reject your dental implants altogether. It is important that you treat your new implants like your natural teeth.

Since dental implants may last a lifetime, it is important to keep your teeth, gums and jawbone strong. To keep your implants as long as possible, try to avoid these bad habits, smoking, poor oral hygiene, using sharp object between teeth, teeth grinding and drinking coffee.  Try to keep a good health profile, drink plenty of water, and your body won’t reject your dental implants.

Talk to our dentist, Dr. Farinas-Han, today to schedule a consult and find out if you are a good candidate for dental implants. 

As someone suffering from tooth loss it is difficult to decide if you should or shouldn’t have surgery to insert dental implants to replace your teeth. At Smiles by Bergen Dental, Dr. Farinas-Han will patiently work with you to help  you decide if dental implants are your best option. Make an appointment with Smiles by Bergen Dental for that perfect smile and healthy teeth.