How Do Dental Implants Stay in Place?

Dental implants have many benefits, such as preserving the facial aesthetics and structures, giving patients’ teeth a natural look and feel, and allowing one to speak, eat, drink normally. Since the implants are now more reliable than ever, the million-dollar question is how they stay in place, despite a long history of failed attempts to replace the human tooth with replicas. Like other areas of medicine, dental implants are better thanks to research. Below are some of the factors that make dental implants stay in place and why are dental implants good for you:  

• The Procedures Are Now More Advanced

Dental implants stay in place due to the advancement in the replacement procedure. Dental specialists handle each replacement process with precision, ensuring the implant stays in place for years. The first stage involves giving the patient antibiotics and anesthesia before cutting the gum to access the bone underneath.

The professional then drills the patient’s bone to create space and determine whether the dental implant will be placed. After carefully placing the implant, the dentist stitches the hole to close it and allows for at least a week before removing the stitches and giving the client several months for the inserted implant and the jawbone to bond. Later, the dentist completes the process by installing the crown after assessing and establishing the jaw bone and the dental implant have bonded. Reach out to a periodontist in the Burbank area for more about full-mouth dental implants.

The above process is key in ensuring the implant stays in place, especially considering the jawbone and the implant must bond before placing the crown, which is often the most visible part of the implant. The periodontist also identifies key aspects through the procedure, such as whether the patient has enough bone density to hold the implant in place and, if not, explore other alternatives.

• The Body’s Natural Fusion Process

Your body’s natural fusion process greatly contributes to dental implants staying in place. Osseointegration, the medical term explaining how the human bones accept foreign materials as part of the body, is key in bonding the jawbone with the titanium implant. However, the patient must have enough bone structure for the natural fusion process to occur.

The choice of metal is also key in Osseointegration as not all metals can bond with the human bone naturally with few complications. In dental implants, titanium is the most preferred material. The dentist screws the titanium screw into the jawbone, and after six months, the jawbone accepts the implant as the new tooth, meaning it stays in place as other teeth. While there are some unique cases, such as the jawbone taking longer to bond with the titanium screw, the success rate is high regardless of the patient’s age.

In addition, the body’s natural fusion process may take more or less time depending on the patient. Luckily, the dentist evaluates the patient’s healing process before installing the crown, reducing the chances of the dental implant coming off after some years.

• Personalized Treatment

Dental implants stay in place thanks to personalized treatments. While the procedures are identical, especially in drilling the jawbone and installing a titanium screw before installing the crown, a customized process is vital in ensuring the implants stay in place for years, just like other teeth.

For example, the specialist monitors the titanium and the bone-bonding process before installing the crown. If the titanium and the bone bond faster, they speed up the process to give the patient the needed flexibilities such as talking and eating. However, the specialist may recommend giving the implant more time before installing the crown if the healing process is slower because of less bone density or other factors.

Besides evaluating the healing process, the specialists assess the client before starting the process of installing the dental implant. Assessment is key in checking whether the patient is a candidate for the dental implant or not, especially considering installing the implant on patients with less bone density may take more time to heal.  

Dental implants stay in place due to many factors. For example, the body’s ability to accept metals as part of the human body and the procedures are vital in keeping dental implants in place. Besides the two factors, the dentist’s experience and expertise are key in the overall result. The more experienced they are, the better the results, as they know how long to wait for the jaw to bond with the titanium screw. When all factors are constant — such as experienced professionals, enough jawbone density, and proper procedure — the chances of dental implants staying in place are more than 98%.