Are Dental Implants Permanent?
Dental implants are designed to function as permanent tooth replacement solutions and rarely have long-term complications. If you have suffered tooth loss from severe decay, infection, periodontal disease, or injuries and are tired of the discomfort and irritation associated, dental implants are an excellent option to replace your natural teeth.
When compared with dentures or partials that require relining every few years or replacements, the dentist in Decatur provides dental implants, a healthier and long-term solution to overcome the problem of tooth loss. Dental implants are durable, do not shift or move in your mouth and allow you to eat, speak, and smile naturally.
If you consider dental implants ideal for yourself, you might have several questions in your mind about them. This article focuses on answering most of your questions to convince you that your dental implants are the optimal tooth replacement solution.
How long do teeth implants last?
Dental implants are a permanent solution for tooth loss and remain in your mouth for over three decades with proper oral hygiene. If you consider dental implants, you must commit to maintaining excellent dental hygiene and follow your dentist’s instructions to the word.
Types of Dental Implants
Unlike earlier, when the choices for dental implants near you were limited, now you have different options when seeking tooth replacement solutions with dental implants. However, you can have three types of dental implants, depending on your specific situation.
Endosteal Implants
An endosteal implant is a variety of dental implants embedded in your jawbone to function as an artificial tooth root. Endosteal implants eventually hold a replacement tooth.
Subperiosteal Implants
Subperiosteal implants, unlike endosteal implants, are not embedded in your jawbone but use a metal frame to fit over the jawbone just beneath the gums. Subperiosteal implants have a series of posts that help support dental prosthetics such as crowns, bridges, or dentures.
What Are Mini Implants and How Long Do They Last?
Mini dental implants are narrow than other varieties. The dentist office in Decatur recommends mini dental implants for placement in areas where you have insufficient jawbone. The process for placing mini implants is minimally invasive and easier.
What Factors Can Influence Whether a Dental Implant Will Fail?
Dental implants from Dr. Quinton Alexander Cobb generally last for a lifetime for most people. Unfortunately, dental implants can fail if the healing process does not proceed as planned. After dental implant placement, the titanium post must osseointegrate with your body in a process requiring three to six months. However, if you do not maintain excellent dental hygiene after getting dental implants, failure can occur.
If you allow plaque buildup around the implant, it causes gum disease and makes you susceptible to peri-implant disease. The early stages of this condition are reversible, but if left untreated, it progresses to a condition called Peri-implantitis, resulting in implant failure. Therefore if you want to avoid implant failure, you must brush your teeth twice a day, floss daily, limit your intake of sugary foods and visit your dentist for checkups every six months.
Implant failure can also occur if you have insufficient bone, indulge in smoking, clench and grind your teeth, have medical conditions, and take medications or get your implants from an inexperienced surgeon.
What Happens If an Implant Fails?
If you have symptoms indicating implant failure, you don’t help yourself rushing to the emergency dentist near you for help. Instead, you must see your dentist or periodontist if you notice signs of an implant moving, discomfort when biting or chewing, signs of Peri-implantitis, and any other symptoms.
Failed implants are removed by Roberts Family Dental — Decatur by providing you with local anesthesia. You can have replacements for the failed implant if you have a single tooth implant. Unfortunately, if bone loss has occurred at the placement site, you might require a bone graft and several months of healing before you receive a replacement.
If you prefer not to replace the implant or cannot go through the procedure, you have alternative treatment options, including dental bridges and dentures. If you are affected by Peri-implantitis, the condition is treatable without removing the implant if bone loss hasn’t occurred. Instead, the Decatur specialist thoroughly cleans and decontaminates the implant and surrounding area and provides a course of antibiotics to deal with the infection.
Dental implants have a sense of permanency about them. The implants integrate with your jawbone to bond with the surrounding bone during the process of osseointegration. Unfortunately, dental implants can fail in some cases you to various reasons. Failed dental implants are replaceable in some cases. However, alternatives are also available if required. Therefore you must see your dentist or periodontist if you experience signs of implant failure.