The Truth Behind 4 All-Too-Common Myths About Dental Implants
If you’re interested in getting dental implants to replace your missing teeth, you’ll naturally want to do some research about the procedure. But while you can find plenty of information online, you do need to be careful; there are some persistent dental implant myths floating around that can give you the wrong idea. Below are 4 common misconceptions about implants and the truth behind them.
1. Getting Dental Implants is Painful
Since having dental implants placed involves oral surgery, many people assume that the procedure is very painful. However, thanks to modern dental technology and techniques, this is very much not the case. Your teeth and gums will be numbed with a local anesthetic during the surgery. As such, you may feel some pressure while your periodontist is working on your mouth, but you won’t feel any pain. Any discomfort you experience after the procedure can easily be controlled with medication.
2. Everyone Will Be Able to Tell That You Have Dental Implants
You might be worried that your dental implants will be very obvious next to your natural teeth, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. The implant posts will be completely hidden under your gums, and the restoration they support will be made out of highly natural-looking materials. This lets them blend right in with the rest of your mouth; most people meeting you for the first time won’t even be able to tell that you ever had to have teeth replaced.
3. You Can’t Get Dental Implants If You Wait Too Long After an Extraction
The jaw tends to lose a lot of bone density over time when teeth are missing. Since there needs to be a certain level of bone in the jaw to support implants, many people think they can’t have the procedure done if their tooth was extracted a long time ago. In reality, even people who have suffered bone loss can often still get dental implants. Bone grafting can be used to encourage the growth of new bone tissue; after a few months of healing, the jaw will once again be strong enough to support implant posts.
4. Dental Implants Require Special Care
Many people think that there’s some trick to maintaining dental implants, but the truth is that it’s not much different from taking care of your regular teeth. All you need to do is brush and floss like you normally would while also visiting your dentist for checkups and cleanings every six months. Compared to the specialized care that traditional restorations like dentures require, protecting dental implants is much simpler.
Getting dental implants can be a life-changing experience, so you’ll want to make sure that all of your information is up to date before you make any decisions. Get in touch with your periodontist today so that they can clear up any other misconceptions that you might have about implants.