How Are Dental Implants Done? A Step-by-Step Guide
TL;DR
Dental implants are a permanent and natural-looking solution for missing teeth. The procedure includes evaluation, surgery, healing, and final tooth installation. Though the process spans several months, it’s safe, minimally invasive, and offers lasting results. Paramount Implant Center offers expert care in Yuba City, Roseville, and Placerville.
Think the only recourse for missing teeth is dentures? Think again. Today, dental implants are a great (and reliable) solution for patients who need to replace a missing tooth.
You may be assured to learn countless patients have regained a symmetrical smile thanks to this amazing process.
Dental implants are fake teeth that sit alongside your natural adult teeth to round out an otherwise gap-prone smile. But unlike dentures and bridges, which are temporary structures, implants are designed to be permanent fixtures in your mouth. Patients can have one or even many dental implant teeth, as needed.
Implants are crafted from non-natural materials and then installed, via structural dental work, to your jaw. And the results are as stunning and natural looking as they are everlasting.
Okay, so that is the what of it all. But, you may be asking, precisely how are dental implants done? Don’t worry, we’ll reveal all.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through each of the steps your dentist may take when installing a dental implant in your mouth.
How is a Tooth Implant Done?
Here are the details about this common surgical procedure, laid out in a helpful step-by-step guide:
Step 1 - Evaluation
Before your dentist brings out their tools, a bit of inspection is first needed. During your initial consultation, your dentist will want to inspect the site where a dental implant may be placed. They will look for everything from jaw structure to neighboring tooth composition.
If your missing tooth is a result of tooth rot or decay, they may also inspect neighboring teeth to assess for additional needs.
If the missing tooth is a result of injury, healing may be required before you pursue an implant. Why? Because dental implants are done as an elective surgery and require a healthy body to heal around the site.
Your evaluation will likely include X-rays and/or 3D images of your mouth. Your dentist will also review your medical history to ensure dental implants are a good match for you.
Once reviewed, your dentist can then recommend a treatment plan for your mouth, which may include one or more dental implant.
Step 2: Initial Surgery
Dental implant surgery, save for the most extreme cases, is an outpatient procedure. It is done in various stages, with multiple visits to your dentist needed.
You will receive a local anesthesia on the day of your surgery to numb the area, just as you would for a filling. Next, your dentist will remove any damaged or diseased teeth to be replaced with a dental implant.
During step 2, your dentist will cut open your gum tissue and expose the jawbone underneath. They will then drill into your jawbone and create a gap where the fake tooth’s structure (akin to a root) will reside.
Bone grafting at the jawbone will be done next to prepare your jaw to accept the hardware for an implant. Since the implant ultimately needs to affix to your jaw itself, a small piece of metal, called an implant body, is first installed. It is drilled into your jawbone during this first surgical visit.
Step 3: Healing
Once your body is installed, your dentist will send you home to recover. You wiil likely be prescribed painkillers during this recovery phase, as there may be some pain as your jaw heals.
This is the longest phase of the process. Your jawbone needs to accept and heal around the implant body to move onto the next step. Expect to recover in step 3 for about 3-6 months.
Step 4: Site Preparation
Once your implant body has been accepted by your jawbone, you’re ready for the penultimate step.
During this visit, your dentist will reopen your gums and expose the implant body once again. They’ll then attach a small metal piece, called an abutment, to your implant body. Think of this as a little metal peg to which your artificial tooth will be attached.
Once the abutment is in place, they will then close the gum line around the abutment and prepare the other materials needed to finish. Since your implant tooth requires a full-healed site to be installed, a bit more waiting may be needed. A temporary crown may be installed at your abutment site during this visit to help fill the gap.
Step 5: Crown Fabrication
Once your jawbone has healed and your abutment is firmly in place, your dentist can begin fabricating your fake tooth. This portion of the dental implant procedure is fairly straightforward and is akin to other fake dental or bridge work.
They may take additional scans of your mouth during this follow-up visit. Your dentist will also use a color grading chart in situ. This will ensure the fake tooth they create is a perfect visual match for its soon-to-be neighboring natural teeth.
Step 6: Tooth Installation and Final Inspection
With a custom-made tooth ready to be placed in your mouth, your dentist will simply attach the new hardware to the existing abutment. Note this final visit is often non-surgical, so very little recovery should be expected from this step onward.
As with other dental work, including fillings or bridges, your dentist will, upon installing your tooth, conduct a bite test. This is designed to ensure your smile is symmetrical and your bite is normal.
Step 7: Celebration
And that’s it! We told you the dental implants procedure is fairly straightforward.
After just a few visits and a few short months, you can bring your smile from a headache into a trouble-free thing of beauty!
Discover a Blissful Smile with Dental Implants
Now that you know how dental implants are done, it’s time to take the next step.
If you are considering dental implants for yourself or a loved one, trust the dental experts in your area. At Paramount Implant Center, our expert dental team has worked with countless patients on restorative dental implants. And we always strive to restore patients’ smiles using modern, effective, and minimally intrusive procedures.
Our implants are all conducted here at our practices in Yuba City, Roseville, and Placerville. If you are local and want the best dental implant specialist in the area, consider Paramount.