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If you have one or more missing teeth, dental implants are a fantastic solution – they’re strong, durable and look and feel natural. In most cases, implants are permanent, providing that you look after them well. As a result, dental implants are becoming more and more popular, especially as an alternative to dentures.
Directly after treatment, the general rule of thumb is that you should avoid exposing any sites of surgery to food if possible. Try to eat soft foods with good nutritious value and drink plenty of water. Your dentist will recommend an ideal diet to you along with instructions to help the healing process.
Once dental implants are fully healed and false teeth are attached, you can eat as normal without worrying about your teeth.
In some extremely rare occasions, the body can reject dental implants as a result of an allergy to titanium. In some cases, implants don’t fuse to the bone the first time as a result of infection, or it develops fibrous tissue around it rather than fusing to the bone. If this happens, the implant can be removed to allow the site to heal. The dental surgeon can then place a new implant that will fuse with the bone properly.
Generally, the full healing process takes around 2 months, but can last as long as 9 months, depending on your treatment plan. The implants heal by fusing to your jaw bone and then the artificial teeth have to be fabricated and attached.
Dental implant placement is carried out under a local anaesthesia in a dentist’s surgery, just as a filling would be. The anaesthetic means that you shouldn’t feel any pain during the surgery. After the anaesthesia wears off, there may be some minor discomfort, but there are rarely any open wounds so healing is quite quick. Discomfort can be managed with anti-inflammatory medication such as Ibuprofen.
The length of time taken to place dental implants depends on how many implants are needed and the location of their placement. Generally speaking, a relatively uncomplicated implant placement can be completed in an hour or less.
Implants are very small titanium rods that are surgically inserted into the jawbone. Within a few months, the jawbone bonds with the titanium rods to form an artificial but natural feeling tooth root.
