Dental implants resemble your natural teeth. It’s a popular choice for teeth replacement due to its durability, functionality and aesthetic appeal. However, implants may last depending on factors that similarly affect your natural teeth.
According to a report, almost 8% of Australian dentate patients had dental implants. Understanding the factors affecting implants’ longevity is crucial for making informed decisions about dental treatments. Let’s explore this further.
Understanding the Lifespan of Dental Implants
Dental implants are an alternative to dentures to replace missing or lost teeth. These are artificial tooth roots that provide a stable foundation in your jawbone. That’s why biocompatible materials like titanium are essential, as implants naturally fuse with your jawbone over time.
But how long do dental implants last? On average, dental implants last from 10 to 25 years or more. Although this is a general estimate, some patients may have them longer. Some may need to be replaced sooner due to various factors. But with proper care, you may enjoy implants for a lifetime.
Key Factors That Affect the Longevity of Dental Implants
Working closely with dental professionals helps you ensure long-lasting dental implants. And practising robust daily dental habits also helps. Below are some factors influencing the longevity of dental implants:
Oral Hygiene
Dental implants are a long-term replacement for tooth loss due to extraction, decay or injuries. These stay depending on how well you take care of them. Poor oral hygiene often results in implant complications.
For instance, bacterial plaque leads to serious conditions like gingivitis, periodontitis and peri-implantitis. These often result in severe gum infection and inflammation surrounding your dental implants. As such, proper oral hygiene is key to help you prevent implant failure and complications.
You must follow certain oral practices to ensure that implants remain firmly anchored in your jawbone. Here are some oral care routines to extend your dental implants’ lifespan:
- Brushing: Use a soft-bristled toothbrush to gently clean your implants twice daily. Brush in circular motions with non-abrasive toothpaste to avoid damaging your implants.
- Flossing: Use implant-specific floss to remove food particles and plaque daily. Be gentle when flossing so you can avoid damaging surrounding gum tissues.
- Antibacterial Mouthwash: Rinse your mouth twice daily with non-alcoholic mouthwash recommended by your doctor. This cleans implants while avoiding irritation of sensitive tissues.
- Regular Dental Check-Ups: Schedule regular check-ups with your dentist to monitor the condition of your implants and surrounding tissues.
- Dental Accessories: Consider using night guards to protect your implants from excessive pressure and potential damage.
Dental Implant Quality
Proper oral care helps you maintain lasting dental implants in the long term. However, this longevity and success still depend on the material quality and how well these are integrated into your jawbone.
To put this into perspective, using biocompatible materials doesn’t cause adverse allergies or reactions in your body. Widely used for dental implants, biocompatible materials like titanium can withstand excessive chewing and biting. This high-quality component fuses readily into your jawbone, ensuring implant stability.
Aside from material strength and durability, your dental surgeon’s expertise is critical to dental implants’ success. To avoid implant failure, your dental surgeons carefully plan and use radiographic tests and computer-guided techniques to ensure accurate implant placement. These practices prevent complications so you can maintain healthy oral tissues.
At Aesthetic Dental Clinic, we have extensive experience providing dental implants that are both functional and aesthetically pleasing. Our skilled dental surgeons only use the highest-quality implant materials and the latest technologies, ensuring optimal implant placement and long-term success.
Bone Density and Jaw Health
Dental implant failure is likely to occur among older patients due to reduced bone quality. When you’re experiencing insufficient bone density, screwing the implants into your jawbone can be challenging. This attachment requires a dense bone so your implants won’t shift or loosen over time.
If your bone is too weak, bone grafting is another option to achieve dental implants. This procedure involves adding bone materials to your jawbone to increase its strength, volume and density. Often, it takes time to heal before you can undergo implant surgery.
Lifestyle Factors
Certain life factors influence the dental implant lifestyle. For example, smoking doubles the chance of dental implant failure. Smoking often delays wound healing, which affects how your jawbone recovers from surgically attaching these implants.
Another lifestyle factor contributing to implant problems is poor diet. Chewing on hard or sticky food often puts excessive strain on your implants and their supporting structures. Worse, consuming sugary and acidic foods promotes tooth decay and erodes your enamel, both of which contribute to implant failure.
Even excessive alcohol consumption affects implants’ lifespan. Heavy alcohol consumers are likely to develop peri-implantitis, an inflammatory condition that may affect tissues surrounding your implants.
To ensure robust dental implant maintenance and longevity, consider the following lifestyle changes:
- Quit smoking – Avoid nicotine buildup in your blood to improve blood flow and the healing process during implant integration.
- Limit alcohol consumption – Drink alcohol in moderation, which helps you prevent oral conditions that may negatively affect dental implants.
- Practise good oral hygiene—Maintain daily oral care, such as brushing, flossing, and rinsing with mouthwash, which is crucial to protecting your dental implants.
- Maintain a balanced diet – Consume various healthy foods and avoid sugary, acidic foods to promote rapid implant healing and recovery.
- Avoid excessive chewing – Be mindful of how you chew and avoid biting on hard objects to protect your implants from potential damage.
Regular Dental Check-Ups
Routine dental check-ups gauge how well you can extend the longevity of your implants. Your dentists help detect early oral problems such as gum inflammation, infection, or loose implants. This also ensures your implants remain firmly anchored and function properly.
By catching these dental issues early, you can avoid the potential oral complications that implant surgery may bring. At Aesthetic Dental Clinic, we understand the importance of post-implantation care.
We provide comprehensive support to monitor and address concerns about your dental implants. We provide professional guidance on proper oral hygiene practices so you can ensure the long-term success and health of your dental implants.
Signs That a Dental Implant May Need Attention
Dental implant surgeries may have potential risks like any other medical procedure. Medical attention is necessary to avoid these risks. Here are the common signs indicating issues with your dental implants, including:
- Discomfort or pain—Any discomfort, pain, or sensitivity around your implant area signals an underlying oral issue.
- Swelling or redness – noticing any swelling, redness or tenderness in your gums can be a symptom of infection or inflammation that requires immediate attention.
- Changes in bite alignment—Biting feels different, or your teeth no longer fit properly, which might stem from an implant issue.
- Unusual taste or odour—Sensing any unpleasant taste or odour from your implant area may indicate implant complications or infections.
- Loose feeling – feeling your implants loose or frail may require it to be tightened or reattached.
When you notice these signs, it is important to contact a dentist immediately. Finding a trusted dental provider like Aesthetic Dental Clinic can help you diagnose and address any issues arising from your dental implants.
The longevity of dental implants depends on their quality, oral health, and aftercare. Beyond these, proper care and routine check-ups from a reliable dental service provider are crucial to extending the lifespan of implants.
As a highly trusted dental clinic in Camden, Aesthetics Dental Clinic believes your dental health is a valuable investment. We take a comprehensive approach to discussing your implant concerns and getting the care you need.
We offer first-time implant patients a free initial consultation. Call us at (02) 4655 4438 to get a lasting, functional, radiant smile!
