Top Dental Implants Dentists Royal Palm Beach

Titanium is biocompatible and has been used in other medical areas as well, such as knee and hip replacement. So yes, it is very safe and is not linked to any health issues. If you have titanium allergy, this should be discussed with your doctor.

It will allow you to regain your smile and eat whatever you like without having any additional treatment done on your neighboring teeth. Depending on your specific case, an implant may not be a better choice for tooth replacement but if you are a good candidate, an implant is as close as it gets to your natural tooth.

For a healthy individual with good oral hygiene and good medical health, dental implants are predictably successful with reported success rates around 92% to 98% percent.

The word permanent is really meant to describe something very long term that continues on into the foreseeable future. Implants can last you a lifetime if great care is taken during placement; if you have a meticulous dental home care; if you maintain your regular dental recall visits; and if you are in good health.

Implants can be placed in patients as young as 16 years old as well as in patients in their 90’s. Overall, you must be in good health, have sufficient bone, good oral health, and are medically healthy enough. If you suffer from chronic problems such as severe clenching and systemic diseases such as diabetes, the success rate for implants decreases. Talk to your dentist about whether or not you are a good candidate for an implant.

The dentist must perform surgery to anchor the dental implant into your jaw bone. The procedure is done in the dental office with local anesthesia. A small incision is made in the gum to access the underlying bone. The implant is carefully placed in the bone. Bone graft is added as needed. The gum flap is closed and secured in place with suture. You will be given detailed post-op instructions and will be scheduled for a post-op appointment in 2 weeks.

Once you are past the initial post-op soreness typically lasting a few days, you will not be aware of anything as the area continues healing. Just because the healing time lasts many months, it does not mean you will have post-op soreness for the duration of that time. Healing is a work in progress that occurs underneath the gums. All you need to do is to keep the area clean, avoid placing unnecessary pressure on the surgical site, and not pull out any of the sutures until they can be removed after 2-4 weeks. When you come in for your consultation, we will explain everything to you in great detail.

It’s important not to apply pressure on the site. The implant needs to remain stable for proper healing. Eat soft foods for a few days. Avoid foods that can cause irritation; such as spicy foods, hard to eat snacks, chewy foods, etc. We will provide you with very detailed instructions.

Implants need to be examined just like natural teeth. Brushing and flossing are very important and will keep the gum tissue healthy, but your dentist also needs to examine there is no bone loss and that the implant components are not loose. Any loosened screw will be subjected to unnecessary stress and will eventually fracture and possibly render the implant hopeless.

Currently there is no recognized implant specialty. Some specialty degree programs teach implant placement in addition to their main specialty training. For example, a periodontist typically deals with all sorts of gum surgeries, but they are also trained to place implants as it does go very well hand in hand with their gum surgery training. Dentists who do not receive formal implant surgery training can either take a one year long full-time implant residency or take part-time hands on CE classes over the course of the years. Dr. Hassan, our periodontist, has many years of experience successfully placing implants for our patients.

The procedure itself doesn’t hurt because anesthetic is administered. The majority of our patients are surprised as to how comfortable placing an implant can be. Most patients have minimal post-op discomfort, while a few others describe it to be similar to a previous tooth extraction. Most cases also involve tooth extraction which obviously causes additional discomfort; as a result, some patients have a tendency to blame the actual implant placement procedure to be the cause of pain but in reality, it is the tooth extraction. We always do our best to keep you as comfortable as possible during your entire treatment length.

A surgical guide is a custom fabricated appliance that resembles a night guard. During the surgery, it is seated over your teeth just like a night guard. It acts as a guide that allows the surgeon to have more control over the exact implant positioning and angulation. This will provide the best possible restorative outcome. Not every single case will require a guide. We always try not to burden our patients with additional expenses but sometimes the use of a guide is a must.

Yes, you can get implants. However, certain measures should be taken to ensure proper long-term function because grinding will place additional stress on your implant and all remaining natural teeth.

• Wear a night guard to distribute the forces more evenly and minimize porcelain fracture. You should wear one even if you did not have an implant.

• It is recommended to get the largest implant width possible for better force distribution. Sometimes, a smaller sized implant may be placed to avoid a bone graft, hence, lowering the overall cost. This is not where you want to cut costs because it may lead to a higher failure rate. Make sure you mention to your dentist if you grind your teeth.
• Every implant prosthetic has a screw that connects the crown to the implant. This screw will have a higher tendency to loosen over time if the crown is subjected to higher than anticipated pressure, typically seen in those who grind. Loosening a screw is not a major setback. The downside is that you will have to see your dentist on a regular basis to torque the screw. Further, a frequently loosened screw should be replaced as it will fatigue and fracture. Replacing the screw will be an added cost.

An implant is not always the best option to replace a missing tooth. We always carefully evaluate each specific case and recommend appropriate treatment. Assuming your specific case is equally suitable for an implant or bridge, there are pros and cons to each treatment:

Implant

Pros: 

• Adjacent teeth do not need to be cut, hence, it is a very conservative treatment
• Implants will feel just like your own natural teeth during chewing
• It  can never decay
• When the crown needs to be replaced, you will only pay for 1 crown vs. paying for 3 crowns in a bridge 

Cons:

• It involves surgery
• Has a higher upfront cost but keep in mind that in the long run it will cost less to maintain
• In some instances, it is more challenging to obtain a high aesthetic outcome
• It can take anywhere from 3-7 months to restore the implant

Bridge

Pros: 

• It is a non-surgical procedure
• In certain cases, it can be more aesthetic than implants
• Lower upfront cost
• In most case it will take 2-4 weeks to complete the treatment

Cons:

• If anything happens to any of the crowns, such as large fracture or decay, the entire bridge will need to be replaced
• The cement under the crown will eventually leak and form decay. A new bridge would be required which is more expensive than a single implant crown 
• It is not that uncommon for one side of the bridge to become loose while the other side remains securely attached to the tooth. Leakage and caries formation is guaranteed. Sometimes the bridge can be tapped off but comes with the risk of tooth fracture. The safest method would be to replace the entire bridge.