A dental implant is a support structure anchored in the jaw to strengthen a tooth replacement. This method requires surgery with a substantial level of expertise and cosmetic dental experience. This procedure inserts the implant into the jawbone, where the bone and the implant structure fuse over time. This connection creates an extension of the jawbone, which can support and secure a dental prosthetic.
Who would be a Good Candidate for a Dental Implant?
Patients that require dental implants must have good overall dental health. Some factors in deciding whether a patient is a suitable candidate include:
- Gum disease
- Diabetes
- Smoking habits
- Osteoporosis
- The degree of tooth decay
- Supportive jawbones
- Bone size and structure
- The health of adjacent teeth
- The health of mucous membranes
- The location in the mouth
- Teeth Grinding
Use of bone-building drugs
Incorporating foreign material into the body can have a high failure rate. To guarantee the most successful outcome of this complex surgery, the patient must meet all essential criteria to ensure the implant will not be rejected.
Dental Implant Procedure
Once the dentist has molds the patient's bite pattern for the tooth bridge or denture, five necessary steps are required to replace the implant successfully. The following is a general synopsis of what each patient can expect when undergoing a dental implant procedure.
Incision
After the dentist administers a substantial amount of anesthesia, the dentist will make a deep incision along the gumline center, directly above the jawbone. The gum tissue is separated and pulled back to expose the bone underneath. The incision site is essential to allow the gum tissue to wrap around or even cover the implant after insertion.
1st Drilling
The first drill is where a highly qualified dentist is crucial. Dr. Young R Kim will use a high-speed drill to place a tiny hole in the bone. The process requires expertise and precision, so the hole does not damage or burn the bone, which could also damage the gum tissue.
2nd Drilling
After the first hole has been created, the dentist will continue to drill at a much slower speed using progressively larger drill bits. When the cavity has reached an optimal size for the implant, the drilling is complete. During this step, careful attention is needed to keep the heat low during drilling to avoid nerve or cell damage.
Dental Implant Placement
The implant is screwed into the hole with a pressure-sensitive wrench to limit over-tightening or undue stress to the surrounding tissue and bone.
Cavity Closure
Once the implant is screwed into the bone, the soft gum tissue is brought back together to surround the implant, leaving the top exposed or covering it completely. The option between covering the implant entirely or allowing it to pierce through the surface gum tissue depends on the type of prosthetic tooth the will be installed.
What Types of Prosthetics can be Installed onto the Implant?
Once the implant procedure is complete, different prosthetic types can be attached to the abutment, a connector to the implant. Dr. Kim and his team, located in New York City, have several years of experience connecting crowns, dentures, and implant fixed bridges to implant-supported abutments. Implant Dentures are also known as Teeth In A Day, All On 4 Implants, and Full Mouth Dental Implants. For multiple tooth prosthetics, the patient may require more than one implant to support the structure. The prosthetic can be further supported by adjacent teeth when anchoring a bridge. This type of bridge is fixed and cannot be removed by the patient. The bridge structure can vary between two prosthetics to a full row, equivalent to a denture. There are also dentures which the patient can remove. These prosthetics have a connector at the anchor points or the abutment itself, allowing the patient to easily remove the denture.
The recovery process can vary between several weeks to months, depending on how quickly the patient heals. The principal goal of cosmetic dentists is to obtain osseointegration with the initial implantation. Osseointegration results from the implant successfully fusing to the bone structure, which can occur naturally when the implant is inserted correctly and not rejected by the body. The process can take as long as six months to guarantee necessary implant stability. After the implant is secured, the dentist can install a prosthetic tooth, bridge, or denture.
Signs that an implant is securely fused to the bone include a lack of:
- Movement
- Pain
- Bleeding
- Bone loss
The dental implant procedure is not major surgery, but allowing ample time for the implant to fuse to the bone fully is crucial to a healthy and stable prosthetic. Bone growth is slow but vital to the success of preventing the implant from any movement. Dr. Young Kim and his team in NYC are committed to their patient's long-term success, in which every effort is made in the care and stabilization of the dental implant. If you are located in the New York area and require cosmetic dental work, you will find comfort in the care and precision of Dr. Young Kim and his staff.
