What Is the Procedure of a Dental Implant?
The dental implant process is surgical to substitute tooth roots with titanium screw-like posts to act as alternates for damaged or missing teeth with artificial teeth that appear and function like your natural teeth. The dental implant procedure offers an excellent alternative to dentures or bridgework that don’t fit well.
How dental implant placement is executed depends on the type of implant and the quality of your jawbone. Dental implants surgery involves various procedures to provide your new teeth solid support. The process requires your jawbone to heal tightly around the implant, which requires several months.
Why May You Need Dental Implants?
Dental implants are surgically inserted in your jawbone to serve as roots of the missing teeth. As titanium is biocompatible and integrates with your jawbone, the implants don’t slip or make a noise like it is familiar with dentures or bridgework. Moreover, the materials don’t decay like natural teeth that can occur if you have bridgework.
Generally, implant placements are excellent for you if you have one or several missing teeth, a jawbone that has attained full growth, sufficient jawbone to secure the implants or can have bone grafts. Besides the above, you must have healthy oral tissues without any health conditions that may affect bone healing. You must commit to several months to the procedure and don’t smoke tobacco.
Preparing for Dental Implant Surgery
If you intend to get missing teeth replacements with dental implants, you must attend several sessions for the process with various specialists. In addition, as dental implants require numerous surgical techniques, you must have a comprehensive evaluation to prepare for the process.
Before the dental implant procedures, you must have a comprehensive dental exam with x-rays and 3D images taken, provide your entire medical history, including any medical conditions and medications you take before a therapeutic plan tailored to your situation is designed weighing factors like how many teeth you want replacing and the state of your jawbone and remaining teeth.
You will need anesthesia during surgery, such as local, sedation, or general anesthesia. Discuss the matter with dental implants in Toronto, ON, to determine which option is best suited for your needs
What to Expect During the Dental Implant Placement?
The procedure for dental implants is performed in stages with plenty of healing time in between. The steps include damaged or decayed teeth removal, bone grafting if required, dental implant placement, osseointegration, abutment placement, and artificial tooth placement. The entire process requires many months from start to finish. However, most of the time is allotted to healing and waiting for the growth of new bone in your jaw.
If you have insufficient jawbone, you will require bone grafting before dental implant surgery. It ensures the implant withstands the chewing pressures with your jawbone, providing the surgery succeeds.
During the dental implant placement, the surgeon cuts open your gums to expose your jawbone. Next, holes are drilled into the jawbone where the dental implant titanium post is embedded. As the implant serves as your artificial tooth root, it is embedded deep into your jawbone. After implant placement, you still have a gap in your mouth. However, the dentist in St. Clair Ave West, Toronto, ON can provide a temporary denture for aesthetic purposes.
You must wait for osseointegration to complete after dental implant placement. During osseointegration, your jawbone integrates with the implant to provide a solid base for your new artificial teeth. The process requires several months. Therefore you must exercise patience until you can proceed to the next stage of the procedure.
Selecting Your New Artificial Teeth
Before selecting your new artificial teeth, you must undergo another surgery for abutment placement when the surgeon reopens your gums to expose the dental implant. The abutment is attached to the embedded implant, and the gum tissue is closed around it. After your gums heal in about two weeks, you revisit the dentist in St. Clair Ave West, Toronto, ON to provide impressions of your mouth and remaining teeth. The images help the dental laboratory fabricate your natural-looking artificial teeth.
You and your dentist in Arlington can choose fixed or removable artificial teeth or a combination of both.
You can expect some discomfort from the dental implant procedure, such as bruising your skin and gums, swelling of your gums and face, pain at the implant site, and some bleeding. However, these are regular occurrences after surgical procedures. You can comfortably overcome the discomfort using painkillers available over-the-counter and ice packs on your cheeks.
During the healing of the surgical site, you must eat soft foods and wait until you have your artificial teeth before you incorporate your regular diet into your foods. Dental implant surgery is highly successful and stands at 96 percent. The placements remain with you for a lifetime so long as you practice excellent dental hygiene, visit your dentist in Arlington for six-monthly exams and cleanings and avoid damaging habits.
If you intend to get missing teeth replacements, please contact Arlington Dental for the dental implant procedure and receive excellent care from the facility.