Dental Implant Procedures: How Long Should I Expect it to Take?

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There many are factors that play into just how long a dental implant procedure takes. These factors could be anywhere from; how many teeth are being replaced? Where are the teeth located? Do any teeth need to be adjusted are removed first? How healthy is your body and your general dental health? Etc. In the average time length, many experience the procedure as a 1-hour initial implant drill session. A few weeks or months later, once healed, the dental prosthesis is added. See below for the exact process of what to expect for a dental implant procedure.

Tooth Extraction: In many cases, before any dental implant is placed, usually there is a rotten, dead, or extremely damaged tooth that must be removed to make way for the dental implant. If this is your case, this will require its own devoted session as this is time-consuming and it needs to be done and healed in a time before the implant is placed. It is extremely important to do detailed research when looking for the perfect dentist for the job. If this tooth (or teeth) is removed and accidentally damage the surrounding teeth or damage your gums on its way out, it could cause the implant to be crooked or even rejected by your body. Tooth extraction can be done under local anesthesia so you won’t feel the pain of the removal.

The Surgical Procedure: This procedure at first may seem a bit intimidating if you do not know the steps that are taken on the day. Be sure to also ask your cosmetic surgeon of any questions you may have prior to the procedure to ensure your peace. The first step is local anesthesia, this is, of course, to ensure you’re incredibly numb and can’t feel pain. A plus side to this is you will still be awake so your mind could be at ease, one downside may be that you will feel pressure (not necessarily pain) during the procedure. If this isn’t what you imagined and want a heavier approach, you may opt for a higher level of sedation where you will be awake but won’t feel anything at all. You may also opt for being completely “asleep” for the whole procedure. Ask your doctor about what might be best for you.

Play by Play: Once you’re perfectly numb or asleep, the cosmetic surgeon will make a large enough incision to drill a small hole in your jaw for the implant. The professional will use a series of drills, starting from extremely small and work his/her way up to the desired size. During this process, your surgeon will be cleaning the drill area periodically to ensure the area is always clean and isn’t overheating from the drill. When the hole in your jaw is at its desired size, the professional will use a special alignment tool to ensure precision when placing the implant. Once the implant is placed and approved, it will be stitched in, either with self-absorbing stitches or traditional ones. If traditional stitches are used, you should come back to have them properly removed. Now, you must stay well rested for a few weeks or sometimes months for full recovery.

Time for The Tooth: After the implant area has healed, it’s time to receive your replacement tooth. You will go to your cosmetic dentist’s office once more so they may create another incision in the same site but now to place your replacement tooth. This is done either by hand by twisting it into the implant or even sometimes using a drill. A final “bite-down” test will be administered to ensure nothing is off with the tooth. Once everything is clear, you will be on your way to healing with your new implant!

The dental office of Ritter and Ramsey provide award winning services, matched with honesty and trust. Consider Ritter and Ramsey for your Dental Implants procedure today.

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