It’s been said that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and for a long time, the same was true for placing dental implants. They required a multi-step, months-long time commitment as they fully healed and fused with the jawbone. It was a pain to spend so much time waiting before you could use your new teeth. However, an advancement in dental technology now allows for the placement and immediate use of same-day dental implants, significantly streamlining the dental implant process. Their straightforward placement makes mini dental implants a preferred implant solution, offering reliable tooth replacement on a much shorter timeline.
The Drawbacks of Traditional Dental Implants
Dentists have been using traditional dental implants since the mid-20th century. They are small, titanium screws that replace the root of a missing tooth. An expert implant dentist like Dr. Mann or Dr. Shatkin will carefully insert the implant directly into the jawbone, where it can then serve as a sturdy anchor for a tooth restoration such as a dental crown, an implant-supported bridge, or implant dentures.
While traditional implants provide a stable base for new teeth, the extended timeline for placement, healing, and potential additional steps such as bone grafting can make them less appealing.
The Implant Placement Process: Traditional Implants
- Consultation: Each implant procedure begins with a detailed free consultation. This includes a detailed chat about your dental history, overall health, and the specifics of the implant procedure. We’ll use 3D images to plan precisely where the implants should go.
- Surgical placement: The next step is to place the implant into your jawbone. Traditional implants require standard surgical techniques like incision and stitches. This is done with local anesthesia so you won’t feel pain.
- Osseointegration: Once the implant screw is in place, the waiting game begins. A conventional implant needs to fuse with your jawbone. This process, called “osseointegration,” can take 3 to 6 months. During this time, your body creates a solid bond between the jawbone and the titanium implant.
- Abutment placement: The abutment is connected after the implant fuses with your bone. This separate piece is like a bridge that connects the implant and the replacement tooth.
- Artificial tooth placement: To complete the process, a crown, bridge, or denture is attached to the abutment.
These steps, which can take six months or more, don’t take into account the possibility of bone grafting. Many patients require a bone graft to build up the jawbone before it can fit a large conventional implant. The bone grafting surgery occurs before implant placement. Following this extra surgery, the jawbone must heal completely before the implant screw can be placed. This adds months of healing to an already lengthy timeline.
Same-Day Dental Implant Benefits
Mini dental implants are a smaller, modern alternative to traditional implants. These slim alternatives to larger conventional implants provide several benefits thanks to their thinner profile. For instance, we can place them using a minimally invasive procedure that doesn’t require incisions or stitches. This translates to a more comfortable procedure and faster healing.
Additionally, mini dental implants are known as “immediate loading” implants. This means they are immediately strong enough to support a temporary or final restoration. This unique feature reduces the procedure duration from months to weeks.
Due to their size, mini implants are perfect for patients with reduced jawbone density. They can also be placed right after an extraction if necessary. Essentially, any adult in good health is a candidate for same-day dental implants—they can even be used to stabilize loose dentures!
The Same-Day Dental Implant Process
The process for placing mini implants is much more streamlined than traditional implants. You can walk into our office for your appointment and walk out with a new set of teeth, ready to use.
- Consultation: As with any implant procedure, a thorough consultation is vital. At this time, Dr. Mann or Dr. Shatkin will begin planning your treatment.
- Non-invasive placement: To place your same-day dental implant, we only need to make a tiny pilot hole through the gums. Since a mini implant is just a single piece, we can complete the entire placement process in minutes. Despite how quickly we can place mini implants, we will still administer local anesthesia to ensure a pain-free process.
- Osseointegration: Mini implants fuse with the jawbone in a matter of weeks, but they can support a restoration before osseointegration is complete.
- Final restoration: Mini implants do not require an abutment. Their one-piece design allows us to attach your custom restoration as soon as it has been created in our dental lab.
Learn More About Same-Day Dental Implants
Daily tasks can be extra challenging with missing teeth or loose dentures. Tooth replacement with traditional implants takes months and requires multiple office visits, but with same-day dental implants, you can have functional teeth in a single visit. If you want to learn more, we encourage you to schedule a free consultation and explore how mini dental implants can transform your life.
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