Dental Implant- My Experience

If you have a tooth that has been removed or needs to be, one option you might have is a dental implant. I had one placed into my mouth about two years ago, and although the entire process took about ten months, I would recommend this to anyone who is told by the dentist that he or she is a good candidate. The biggest advantage of an implant is that it will be just as strong as a natural tooth. This is because the titanium material in the implant actually makes a chemical bond to the bone in the jaw. In my case the dentist also put in a small amount of additional bone to support the implant, and that no doubt added some time to the entire process.

My case was a bit strange. At one of my normal six month cleaning and checkup appointments, the hygienist noticed that the gum next to a tooth on the lower right side of my mouth would recede way too far when she pushed down on it with a dental tool. After taking an x-ray, the dentist saw that about half the root on one side of the tooth was gone. He said it looked like my body was rejecting the tooth. He had only seen this condition a few times in over thirty years of practice, but the bottom line was that the tooth was no doubt already infected and had to be removed.

The dentist explained my two options for replacing the tooth. One was a bridge, and I know about bridges because I have had one on the other side of my mouth since I was 18 years old. A newer technology, he explained, was dental implants, and I was fascinated to hear about how the implant material would bond with the bones in my jaw and that the implant would be just as strong as a natural tooth. The only downside seemed to be that these implants don’t always work. I’ve read that they work 95% of the time for bottom teeth, and 90% of the time on top teeth. The article did not explain why there was a difference in results between top and bottom teeth. My dentist referred me to a specialist for the tooth extraction and the implant, a periodontist. The periodontist examined me and took more detailed x-rays and determined that I was a good candidate for an implant. The cost for both an implant and a bridge was roughly the same, if anything the implant was slightly less. My insurance paid for about half the cost, so I had to pay about $2,000 out of pocket.

Click on Part II of this article in the article directory above left.