Dental Implants

What to Expect from Your Dental Implant Experience

We strive to make our patients feel at ease and informed by providing them with an in-depth explanation of the entire process. To ensure a successful implant experience, having realistic expectations and following your dentist's instructions is essential.

A tooth can be deemed non-restorable for several reasons: a large cavity, gum disease, a fractured crown or root, infection, persistent pain, swelling, or otherwise not a good candidate to save. If you and Dr. Goettsche decide that a tooth is not worth restoring, the next step will be extracting the tooth and likely grafting the site.

Dr. Goettsche will thoroughly discuss all your options available before extracting the tooth. In many cases, a bone graft will be indicated in conjunction with an extraction if you plan to replace the tooth with an implant. Cases in which bone grafts are highly indicated include the need for esthetic support of the bone and soft tissue and extraction sites in which bone level and thickness are crucial to maintain. 

If the patient desires, Dr. Goettsche can fabricate a temporary replacement for the missing tooth to wear until an implant can be placed and restored. While the immediate placement and restoration of implants are possible following extraction of a tooth, the cases where it is ideal are slim, and the risk of failure of both the implant and restoration greatly increases.

Many people are unnecessarily nervous on the day of their implant procedure when the placement of an implant is often less painful than many other dental procedures, such as an extraction or root canal. Especially with the advances of modern dentistry and the technology and experience we have at 208 Dental, implant surgery can be a breeze.

To prepare for your implant placement, we will take a 3D x-ray (CBCT) and an intraoral scan of your mouth. Let’s compare this to conventional methods for implant placement for a moment. Most doctors study a 2D x-ray, examine your mouth, and place an implant in your bone. If you ask any doctor, much of the long-term success of an implant comes from the location the implant is placed in. When an implant is slightly misplaced, it can lead to food traps, aesthetically displeasing outcomes, and decreased success and longevity. 

At 208 Dental, we prepare for every case by utilizing that 3D x-ray and intraoral scan (say goodbye to your gag reflex!) to virtually plan and place an implant before your surgery day. Thus, we are better prepared for your surgery, leading to better outcomes. We then use our 3D printer to create a surgical guide so we can easily and predictably place an implant in the exact spot we had planned to. Implant surgery times and post-operative pain are considerably decreased due to the accuracy and predictability of treatment. Moreover, many cases can be completed without cutting or flapping large amounts of gum tissue. Fewer sutures too!

Following placement of your implant, we will wait another 3-5 months for the osseointegration of your implant. Osseointegration is the process of your bone to strengthen around your new implant and fully heal. This 3-5 month period will vary by patient and restoration type. In the case of a hybrid of all-on-4 dentures for example, the restoration can be placed immediately due to what is known as cross arch stability. However, most implants placed for single units or implant-supported bridge restorations will require this 3 - 5 months. Once this has occurred, we will prepare for the placement of your crown. Depending on the case, a minor procedure known as an "implant uncovery" may or may not be necessary before taking another intraoral scan of your mouth and fabricating a crown. If so, this only adds an additional, but extremely worthwhile, 2-3 weeks to the entire process. The culmination of the whole implant process will be the placement of your restoration. Because most implants are placed to replace a single missing tooth, this will most likely be a single crown. However, implant restorative options range from a single crown, an implant-supported bridge, an implant retained denture (2 implants placed), an implant-supported denture (4 implants placed), an all-on-4 denture, to a hybrid full arch case.

Okay, that was a lot! Let’s RECAP the timeline for the most common implant procedure, extracting a tooth and a single tooth implant.

As you can see, pending your case, a typical implant procedure can take anywhere from 3-7 appointments and range from 4 to 9 months. At 208 Dental, you should know we prioritize our patient’s well-being above anything else; therefore, any recommendation provided during your visit is based solely on what best suits your needs. We are here to guide you through every step of your dental implant experience!