If you are considering dental implant treatment, or have perhaps already booked in for your treatment, then it’s important to know that dental implant treatment is, typically, very successful. For most patients, the odds of having a successful procedure for dental implants are around 95%, but as your dentist will tell you, a lot of that success comes down to things you can do preparing and following your treatment.
Dental implants require a surgical procedure and, as with any other type of surgery, there are some risks involved. For dental implant patients, you want to ensure that you are doing all that you can to make your treatment a success so with that in mind, let’s take a look at 3 things you can do to ensure your dental implant treatment is a success.
Adequate Recovery Time
As with all surgeries, there will be some recovery time following treatment for single or full dental implant surgery. As an anaesthetic will be used, you will likely feel groggy following your surgery so going home and getting plenty of rest is recommended. Your mouth will likely feel tender and you’ll have a dull ache for a few days following implant surgery, so be sure to drink plenty of water and take painkillers if needed. You might experience some swelling and bruising on your face around the implant area, so you may wish to stay off work for a few days until the swelling subsides and you’re not experiencing any discomfort.
Following surgery, your mouth will likely take a few months to fully recover. It takes around 4-6 months for the jaw bone to fuse to the metal implant, so ensuring that you take good care of them during this recovery period is recommended for successful implant success.
Avoid Certain Foods
Your gums will be sensitive for a few days following dental implant surgery so you may not feel up to eating much but, in the first 7-10 days especially, following your treatment you should actively avoid certain foods. These include things such as crunchy and hard foods like seeds, nuts, bread rolls and crisps and sticky foods and sweets which may cause discomfort. As the implant area will be healing, you should also avoid acidic foods which could cause stinging and discomfort, as well as hot or spicy foods which could aggravate the area.
Foods which are difficult to chew should also be avoided or limited as the more you move your jaw, then the higher the potential risk of damage or injury to the implant site. When your mouth is healed from the initial surgery, you will likely be able to resume your regular eating habits with your temporary implants, but your dentist will provide further instructions.
Check In With Your Dentist
Following your surgery for dental implants, you should check in regularly with your implant dentist. They will be able to check the implant sites, assess your healing process and make suggestions as to things you can do to help with the success of your implants. As with all surgeries, you are at risk of infection in the initial days, so if you notice any signs of infection, such as bleeding, redness, throbbing or a fever, then let your dentist know and they will likely ask you to visit the cosmetic dental clinic where you had your treatment.