If you have lost teeth or suffer a chronic problem that affects your teeth, you could need tooth replacement through dental implant surgery. Dental implants are the ideal option to support replacement teeth. Our experienced dentists have performed the procedure for decades because of its excellent success rate, functionality, and aesthetics. If you need dental implant surgery, then the La Puente Dental Implant Center is the practice you should choose.

Overview of Dental Implant Surgery

Dental implant surgery is a procedure that dentists perform to replace patients’ natural teeth roots with new titanium screw-like posts. These posts are placed surgically in the jawbone to support the artificial teeth, including dentures or dental crowns. Artificial teeth function and look like natural teeth. Dental implants are the perfect alternative for dentures or bridgework candidates with missing natural teeth.

Dentists perform dental implant surgery depending on the dental implant you need and your jawbone’s condition. Before the dentist places titanium posts in the jawbone, they could perform multiple procedures. Dental implantation is a preference for many patients and dentists because it enhances artificial teeth stability. For that to happen, after surgery, the dental implant must be allowed a minimum of six weeks to fuse with the bone in a process called osseointegration.

Types of Dental Implants

Many companies manufacture dental implants. These companies use various designs and materials to create dental implants. Because of the variety, dentists and patients alike have many dental implant options. The type of implants the dentist uses depends on your oral needs.

It’s worth noting that dentists use different approaches. If a particular oral surgeon places a dental implant in your jawbone, you should go back to the same dentist when you need repairs. Avoid a new dentist when seeking repairs on an existing dental implant because they might be new to your kind of restoration. The dentist might also lack access to the material used by your previous oral surgeon.

Typically, these restorations are grouped based on the process used to place them. Discussed below are types of dental implants:

  1. Two-Stage Implants

Under two-stage implant treatment, the surgeon surgically attaches the implant in the jawbone and sutures the gingiva tissue. You are then allowed a few months to heal before another minor surgery is performed to place the abutment and the temporary restoration.

  1. Endosseous or Endosteal Implants 

Under endosteal implants, the dentists create a pilot hole directly into the jawbone, and after the surrounding gum tissue has healed, a connector is attached to the implant. The abutment acts as the foundation upon which the artificial tooth is placed. Endosteal is a type of two-stage implants commonly used as an alternative to bridges or removable dentures. Endosseous implants come in different forms, including the threaded, smooth, or bladed ones.

  1. Single-Stage Dental Implants 

With a single-stage implant type, the oral surgeon attaches a longer implant on the bone to attach the base to the bone. In contrast, the upper section of the implantation attaches to the gingiva soft tissue. The tissue is closed, making the cap of the dental implant noticeable from the mouth.

Surgeons do this to avoid another minor surgery once the dental implant has fused with the jaw. With the implant cap on top of the stitched gum tissue, they won’t cut open the gingiva tissue again to attach the connector and the interim artificial tooth. Instead, they will just attach the abutment to the cap of the implant.

  1. Subperiosteal Dental Implants 

Subperiosteal implants are metal frameworks that dentists attach below the gum line but over the natural bone. The metal structure has abutments or connectors that protrude out and attach to the natural-looking teeth. These types of implants are hardly used today, but in the past, they were used to secure dentures where patients have insufficient natural jawbone height safely. According to ADA, the safest dental implants are subperiosteal and endosteal, but the decision depends on your oral needs and what suits you best.

Who Should Choose Dental Implant Surgery?

As mentioned earlier, dental implants act as artificial roots for missing teeth. They are surgically attached to the jawbone to provide anchorage for the natural-looking teeth that replace your natural teeth. The titanium posts fuse with the natural jawbone and become one thing, thus providing stability for your dentures or bridgework. Despite the benefits of this surgical procedure, it is not right for everybody.

You should opt for this procedure if:

  • You have one or multiple missing natural teeth.
  • You have a jawbone that is fully matured.
  • You have adequate and healthy jawbone to support the dental implant.
  • You are free of any oral health condition that might interfere with healing.
  • Removable dentures are not an option.
  • You are not a tobacco smoker or promise to quit smoking during treatment.
  • You are willing to sacrifice many months of treatment.
  • You want to enjoy more food varieties.
  • You have healthy gingival tissues.
  • You have no underlying oral condition.
  • You are eligible for bone grafting because of the loss of jawbone mass.

Not everyone is qualified for this treatment, as you can see from above. First, the person’s age can disqualify them from the treatment if the jawbone is not mature. Anybody below 18 years of age is not eligible for the treatment because their natural bone is still growing. Girls’ jawbones mature faster than boys, but it's best to talk to your oral surgeon about the matter.

For candidates whose jawbone mass is inadequate to allow fusion with the implant, they cannot be ruled out of the treatment. The reason being dentists can increase the jawbone density through a procedure known as bone grafting. You can discuss bone grafting with the dentist so that it can be part of your treatment plan.

It’s worth remembering that oral issues, notably missing multiple teeth, can result in speech impediments. Having speech problems can affect your social life in many ways, resulting in social anxiety or even depression. Fortunately, with dental implant surgery, you can overcome all your speech problems because the implants will function and look just like the natural teeth.

Consultation

After establishing that what you need to address your oral problems is a dental implant surgery, the next step should be scheduling an appointment with La Puente Dental Implant Center. Our oral surgeons and other specialists will evaluate your health condition and need to come up with a tailored treatment plan that suits you best. We understand that patients’ needs are different, so a preliminary consultation is always essential to determine the next course of action.

Dental implants might require more than one procedure hence the reason we prioritize a thorough evaluation of your oral and overall health. During the consultation, a dental expert will conduct a comprehensive examination of your teeth using x-rays and 3-D CT scans. These devices capture an image of your dental structure and create a model of your teeth and jawbone. The models are for ensuring the precise placing of the implants while avoiding the anatomical structure of your jaws and gums, such as nerves.

Depending on your oral condition, habits, and commitment to postoperative instructions, the oral surgeon will determine the best dental implant treatment.

An experienced dentist will also collect your blood sample and perform a few physical tests to determine if you have a condition that might cause surgical complications. It is at this point also that the dentist should review your medical history. Although they will conduct tests on you, they will not know everything about your medical history. Consider opening up about any underlying health conditions and over the counter medications if any.

Some of the health conditions you should let the dentist know about include:

  • High blood pressure.
  • Epilepsy.
  • Hypotension.
  • Diabetes.
  • Obesity.
  • A family history of stroke.
  • Heart, kidney and lung disease.
  • Allergic reaction to the medication.

If an oral surgeon is aware of such conditions, he or she will know the right measures to put in place, such as administering antibiotics if you have a heart condition. The dentist will also provide you with an option of general anesthesia. The choice of anesthesia drug to be administered depends on your overall health.

Once the dental professionals have done an extensive dental examination and learned about your medical history, the next step involves devising an appropriate treatment plan. The plan will depend on how you want the new teeth to look, your oral problems, and the number of teeth to be replaced.

Every dental patient is unique. Therefore, you should not expect your treatment to take the same time as that of another patient. Dentists will use your unique situation to advise on the length of treatment.

 A day before the surgery, you will receive instructions on the meals to stick to and those to avoid. Additionally, you will be requested to avoid tobacco for seven days or any blood-thinning medication three days before the dental implant operation.

The Dental Implant Surgery Process

Dental implant surgery is an outpatient procedure performed in different stages and takes months to heal. The majority of patients take up to six months and at least four months to recover. Others with special conditions might take up to twelve months before healing.

The implantation occurs in the following stages:

  • Removal of the diseased tooth.
  • Preparation of the jawbone including bone grafting where necessary.
  • Initial implantation of the dental implant or titanium post.
  • Osseointegration.
  • Attaching the connector or abutment to the fused titanium post.
  • Custom fitting and fabrication of artificial teeth.
  • Placement of the artificial teeth.

Typically, each dental implant takes one hour to be surgically placed. The total duration will depend on the number of teeth you want to replace.

Bone grafting in Dental Implant Surgery

Before this operative procedure, if your jawbone lacks sufficient mass, you will need bone grafting. If you chew hard after the implant has been placed on a weak jawbone, the pressure exacted might fail the dental implant. Therefore, instead of wasting time and money on a procedure bound to fail, oral surgeons first strengthen the jawbone through grafting.

The dentist can extract a bone from other parts of the body or use synthetic bones to provide structural support to your natural jaw. The transplanted bone will take months to grow and provide adequate support to the implant. Fortunately, dentists can perform a minor bone graft implant surgery together so that the transplanted bone can grow as the jaw’s dental implant fuses.

Placement of Dental Implants

Attaching the dental implant to the jawbone involves cutting open gum tissues to access the jawbone. Once the bone is exposed, the surgeon bores a hole into the bone to create room for the screw-like titanium post. The posts will secure the artificial teeth and will act as the natural teeth roots.

And because the dental implant is below the gums, there will still be a gap left by the missing teeth. Remember, you will have to wait for months so that the implants can fully fuse with your bone. During this period, you cannot stay with an open socket. Dentists place an interim artificial tooth to cover the gap where a tooth is missing. The interim dentures are removable, meaning you can take them off during meals or time for bed.

Osseointegration

The kind of dental implants used in the current era is almost indistinguishable from natural tooth roots. The main reason for this is the functional and structural connection between the titanium post and the natural jawbone. Placement of the dental implants takes about one hour, but it takes a minimum of six weeks and a maximum of a half a year for the implant to anchor on the jaw in a process called osseointegration.

Note that if the jawbone fails to grow and unite with the dental implant, the procedure is bound to fail because the artificial teeth will not have a strong base to anchor.

Attaching the Abutment

Once the bone has grown and united with the dental implant’s surface, you will go back to the oral surgeon, where a minor surgery is performed on the gum tissue covering the implant. An abutment is then placed on the dental implant to create a foundation for the crown. The surgeon then closes the gum tissue but without covering the abutment. The final step of this process involves attaching the crown to the abutment.

Keep in mind that it is not mandatory to have two surgeries. In the initial procedure, you could have the abutment and dental implant attached. This means that you will not require a second surgery since the abutment already juts over the gum line. But despite saving you from a second surgery, most people don’t prefer abutments protruding over the gum line because they are visible, which might hinder their appearance.

If the abutments were attached to the dental implant during the first surgery, it would be completed on your second visit to the dentist. But if the gums were cut open to attach the abutment, you will need to wait for two weeks for them to heal before you can go for the final visit where permanent crowns or dentures are placed.

Post-Surgery Instructions 

Healing after the procedure depends on many things, including the stages involved to complete the treatment. To ensure proper healing, oral surgeons give patients instructions on how to care for the dental implants post-surgery.

Keep in mind that dental implant surgery involves many incisions that have to be sutured for the wound’s quick healing. Typically, sutures dissolve by themselves, but there are those oral surgeons who use sutures that need to be removed manually after seven to ten days following the operation. The surgeon will be the one to guide you on the return date.

To heal and recover well, you must ensure that the wound is not disturbed. Touching the sutures using your tongue is natural, but following dental implant surgery, you should avoid doing it. Doing so will allow your gingival tissues and jawbone to heal adequately and fuse with the dental implant.

During the first 48 hours after the procedure, you will experience bleeding. Fortunately, you can control this by gently biting down a sterile gauze pad for around a half an hour. In case the bleeding persists, talk to your dentist or surgeon.

Swelling and inflammation are apparent after this surgical procedure. The dentist will recommend NSAID or anti-inflammatory drugs to lower these side effects. You could also prevent swelling by applying an ice pack on your cheek for one and a half days after surgery.

Before you leave the dental office, you get instructions on the diet you can enjoy and the things you shouldn’t consume. You will be advised to stick on soft foods and drink a lot of clear liquids to stay hydrated. You will also get a Peridex oral rinse from the dentist, which you will be used to rinse your teeth twice daily after breakfast and when going to bed.

Risks Associated with Dental Implant Surgery

Like any other form of surgical procedure, dental implantation carries with it some risks. Complications rarely occur, and if they do happen, they are usually minor complications that are easy to address.

Experienced dental implant surgeons will always ensure that the patient is comfortable during treatment, which is why during preliminary consultation, a dentist checks with you to determine if you would prefer general or local anesthesia. With general anesthesia, you will be unconscious until the treatment is complete.

General anesthesia carries with it many risks. You might experience an allergic reaction to the drugs or experience post-surgery confusion or anxiety. The medication is mainly a combination of different drugs like deep or light sedation to put you into a deep sleep. And because bodies react to medications differently, if you have a health condition or allergic to specific drugs, inform the surgeon so that they can pick a drug that suits your situation.

In case you want to be awake during the surgery, local anesthesia can be used to numb the jaw site where the surgery is to be performed. The most commonly used local anesthesia includes Novocaine or lidocaine. At times these two can even be combined to numb the area to be operated safely. The dentist administers this medication using a massive syringe on the area to be operated. The good thing with local anesthesia is that you don’t have to deal with postoperative confusion, agitation, or intoxication. 

Smoking increases the risk of complications during dental implantation. To prevent such complications, you will be advised to quit smoking seven to ten days before the surgery.

Between 4 to 10 percent of patients who undergo dental implant surgery risk post-surgery infection, and the infection occurs when you fail to maintain healthy oral hygiene through regular brushing and flossing. When tartar accumulates between the gums covering the implant, an infection develops, making the dental implant procedure fail.

There are specific measures that you can take to prevent these infections. The surgeon will give you instructions on how to care for the teeth and maintain healthy teeth. On top of the instructions, they will prescribe antibiotics that you will use for a specified period. These medications aid the body in fighting pathogens.

Find a Dental Implant Specialist Near Me 

Dental implants can increase your confidence and create a beautiful smile. There are several things required to make dental implant surgery successful that not every oral surgeon can deliver. At the La Puente Dental Implant Center, we have experienced oral surgeons and dentists who will safely complete the procedure. If you need dental implant surgery, call us today at 626-995-0456 for a no-obligation preliminary consultation.