subject: Plano Dental Implants And Your Oral Health [print this page] A December 2012 report on a long term study of dental implants by the University of Bern in Switzerland concluded that the 10-year success rate of dental implants was 97%. Furthermore, the study concluded that the chances of the patient experiencing a complication called peri-implantitis was less than 2%, and none of the implants in the study group fractured over the 10 year period. Dental implants have been around long enough for their long term effects to be assessed, and the long term prognosis for dental implants is very impressive. Ask your Plano dental implant dentist if implants are an option for you.
Factors that Affect Implant Success
Dental implants function like healthy teeth, and factors that affect natural teeth also affect implant health. Specifically, smoking, infection, poor oral hygiene, and gum disease are factors that make long term success of dental implants less likely. Patients with implants must carry on with consistent daily hygiene if they want their dental implants to stay healthy, and if they do this, typically they are able to keep their implants indefinitely. Problems like gum disease or infection must be addressed promptly so that complications that could threaten the dental implants can be avoided.
Care of New Dental Implants
When you receive dental implants, your dental hygienist will show you the best way to care for your mouth on a daily basis. He or she will keep up with the latest dental implant research and adjust your dental hygiene plan as needed so your smile remains healthy and beautiful. For the first few weeks after having implants installed, you will have to have a diet of mostly soft foods, and you will have to get into the habit of caring for your implants as directed every day. It will take from six to nine months until the titanium implant fuses completely with your jaw bone.
How Your Plano Dental Implant Dentist Cares for Your Implants
Even after your implants have healed and you are used to having them, you will need to see your Plano dentist for regular dental checkups to make sure your implants and other teeth are healthy. Your hygienist will use tools that are specifically suitable for cleaning implant teeth to clean them thoroughly without damaging them. If your hygienist or dentist notices a problem, you will need to follow any treatment directions to prevent complications that could threaten the health of your dental implants.
Are Plano Dental Implants Right for You?
You may think that you cannot get dental implants because you have lost bone in your jaw due to missing teeth. However, many of these patients can have dental implants, sometimes with the help of bone grafting. In general, patients who are healthy enough to have routine procedures like having cavities filled are healthy enough for dental implants. The first step, of course, is scheduling a consultation with your Plano implant dentist and discussing your options. With care and commitment, implants let you have beautiful, functional teeth for the long term.
