Procedures

Dental implants

Talk to your dentist about...

Medications and medical history—Patients who are taking bisphosphonate medications may be requested to suspend those medications (following a consultation with their physician) for a period of time before implants are placed, and during the healing phase. This is especially true if the patient receives the medication intravenously, or is also taking corticosteroid medications. Patients who are taking blood thinning medications may also be asked to suspend them (on approval from their physician) for surgical procedures like dental implants. Patients who have a history of radiation to the head or neck region may require hyperbaric oxygen treatments before undergoing oral surgical procedures, including dental implants and bone grafts. Talk it over with your dentist and physician.

Are you a good candidate for dental implants? Most people are, and have a very high probability of success. Some people have a decreased chance of success due to any of several factors, including smoking, diabetes (which can interfere with proper healing), improper calcium metabolism or a tooth clenching / grinding habit. If you have any of these conditions, discuss them thoroughly with your dentist before undertaking surgical dentistry. You may have other conditions which are also relative contraindications to treatment, and you should discuss them with your dentist before moving ahead. A better treatment outcome will result if risk factors are identified and planned for in advance.

How many implants would be recommended? Generally an implant is recommended for each missing tooth. However, it is possible in certain cases to span one to a few teeth with a fixed bridge attached to implants on the ends. It is also possible to attach a fixed bridge to an implant on one end, and a tooth on the other. When this is done, a rigid cement attachment to the natural tooth, and a semi-flexible attachment to the implant is desirable, to compensate for the fact that implants do not have flexible ligament attachments to the jawbone like teeth do.
Learn more: Procedures › Fixed partial dentures

What are some other options to replace the missing teeth? What are the risks and benefits of each? Generally options are available that cost less than dental implants; however, the tradeoff is usually in functionality and convenience. Implants typically function just like normal teeth, and with the exception of implant supported dentures, do not need to be removed by the patient.

What are the timing options for placing, uncovering and restoring implants? Does shortening the timeline introduce additional risks for failure? There is a significant amount of advertising these days, promising "Teeth in a day". If you decide to have a tooth removed and replaced the same day with an implant-supported crown, be certain you understand the limited circumstances under which this can successfully be done, and any additional risk factors which may be introduced.

What is the office policy if an implant fails? You should realize that failure can occur at either the surgical phase (e.g. implant fails to integrate into the bone, integrates in the wrong position, etc.), or the restorative phase (e.g. implant crown breaks, abutment loosens, etc.) There can be ambiguity about which dentist to talk to in the event of failures when more than one dentist is involved in the process. Generally, the dentist who performed the procedure is the one to ask about policy in the event of failure. If there are multiple dentists involved, ask them all.

Are there separate fees for placing the implant, uncovering it, placing soft tissue-forming collars, placing abutments, and restoring the implant(s)? What are the fees for each step? All too frequently, patients who have undergone surgical placement of one or more implants are unaware of or forgot about the cost of the additional attachment hardware, and are unpleasantly surprised by the bill when it comes time to restore the implant(s).

Will any preliminary procedures such as bone grafting or sinus elevation surgery be necessary before the implant(s) can be placed? If so, how will it affect the timeline? How much will it add to the cost? How will it affect the long term prognosis of the implant(s)?