Having a dental implant placed is a minimally invasive surgical procedure that we can perform in our office. It is generally done with simply a local anesthetic, though we do have multiple conscious sedatives available if needed. Much of the work is completed in the planning phase of your implant procedure. We would have helped you gain control of any active bacterial infections, removed any unhealthy teeth, and for many of our patients even helped them grow new bone with a bone graft procedure.
Dental implants are sunk into your jawbone, so if teeth had already been missing, we assume the bone has atrophied or shrunk through sorption. Once all of the preparatory work is completed, placing the implant is fast. We begin with helping our patient be comfortable with a local anesthetic.
We then open the gum tissue to reveal the bone beneath. We use a specialized dental drill to make space in the bone, and insert the implant. The tissue is then sutured closed and the patient is sent home for a period of time to heal. You will find that your soft gum tissue heals quickly, in a matter of days, but the bone tissue takes much longer to heal, possibly even six months. As the bone heals, it grows around the implant fusing the two firmly together. Once healed, we can then add the prosthodontic that was planned before the implant was placed.