What You Need to Know About Dental Implant Restoration
What is a dental implant restoration?
The dental implant restoration is the actual part of the implant restoration that you see. The dental implant is the titanium screw that's put down into your bone. The implant restoration is the abutment and crown that brings the implant to the tooth shape inside your mouth. It's what you're chewing on and what you look at as the tooth inside your mouth.
What does dental implant restoration entail?
After going through the process of having the implant placed in the bone, restoring the implant is straightforward. Sometimes if the implant was placed and we let your soft tissue, your gums, grow back over the implant, the first step would be uncovering the implant. Generally, after the implant is placed, we evaluate it to ensure it's integrated with your bone.
Once confirmed, the patient comes in. If we need to uncover the tissue, we'll remove it. Then we take an impression of the implant, often a digital impression with a tiny impression coping connected to the implant. This allows us to take a digital impression of your jaw, giving the lab a representation of where the implant is placed. The lab fabricates the abutment and crown.
Once the abutment crown is made, you return to the office. We usually have a healing abutment protecting your soft tissue. We unscrew the healing abutment, screw in your abutment and crown, and you're good to go.
How can I make my dental implants white again?
There are a few answers to this. The dental implant is the screw in your bone, and it's titanium, so we can't make the implant white. What we really mean is the crown restoration on top of the implant. Unfortunately, once the zirconia porcelain or whatever material is used for that implant is made, that color will not change. You can't whiten implant crowns like natural teeth. When we place an implant crown, we try to match it to your teeth as closely as possible.
Over a couple of decades, if your surrounding teeth change color and you want to change the implant crown color, the crown would likely need to be replaced.
Is it possible to do screw-retain implant restorations for single crowns?
The answer is yes. We are trying to do screw-retained implant crowns for all implants. A screw-retained implant allows easy removal of the implant crown and abutment for evaluation if there are issues.
One of the biggest issues with non-screw retained implants is the cement, which can affect the implant itself. Ideally, we try to do all implant restorations screw-retained.
How many years can you keep a dental implant for?
The simple answer is hopefully the rest of your life. Here at Reiser Dental, we have implants placed back in the 70s, when implants were first starting to be placed. They weren't placed by me—I wasn't even born yet—and they are still functioning fine in our patients' mouths. Ideally, an implant will last multiple decades, if not the rest of your life.
How many times can a dental implant be replaced?
This varies between the restoration and the actual implant. The short answer is an implant can be replaced as many times as needed. It requires time, letting the bone heal, placing the implant, and letting it reintegrate. Implants can be replaced as needed, but ideally, we place one implant that never needs replacement.
Regarding the crown on top, it can be replaced as many times as deemed necessary. Our goal is to place an implant, place the abutment crown on, and never need to replace it.
How common is a dental implant failure?
It is very uncommon. Multiple studies show the long-term survivability of a dental implant for over 10 years is 95%.
What is the most common reason for implant failure?
The short story is usually oral hygiene. Although the implant isn't a natural tooth and can't get cavities, not keeping it clean can lead to bacteria around the implant. This bacteria can affect your bone, causing bone loss and implant failure. Other causes include excessive biting and grinding, smoking, and poor oral hygiene.
Systemic issues can also cause implant failures. If we can save a failing implant, it depends on how bad it is. There are techniques to care for an implant starting to fail, as long as it's not about to come out. We evaluate the bone and soft tissues around every implant. If there are issues, multiple surgeries and specific cleanings can help disinfect bacteria and save the implant.
How can we prevent dental implants from failing?
First and foremost is good oral hygiene. Keeping the implant and the area around it clean improves its prognosis for survival. Regular checkups allow us to evaluate the implant and address any issues. The most important factor for implant health is your oral hygiene and how clean you keep the area.
How long does an implant restoration take?
It's a straightforward and quick process, especially if we place the implant with the abutment coming through the tissue so we don't need to uncover it later, which is how I typically do implants at Reiser Dental.
The process is quick and easy. You come in, we unscrew the healing cap, screw in a scan body, and take a digital impression of your upper and lower jaw. We put the healing cap back on after removing the scan body.
You usually return in about two and a half weeks for us to deliver the implant crown. Both procedures, the impression and placing the abutment crown, don't usually require numbing and take about half an hour each.
How do I know when my implant is ready to restore?
It's not for you to decide; that's our role. We have generalized timelines for implant integration with your bone, but once we believe it's integrated, I have methods to test the implant's security in your bone and readiness for restoration. This is usually at the four to six-month mark after placement.
If you’re looking for dental care you can trust, call us at (720) 797-5554 or email [email protected]. We’re here to help you have the smile you've always wanted!