What Impacts Dental Implant Success Rate?
Dental implant success rates have improved along with modern dental implant technology.
People tired of dealing with missing or damaged teeth really like how dental implants can be the perfect solution. However, before you bank on having the procedure, it’s essential to understand the factors that influence the dental implant success rate. From your overall health and the dentist’s expertise level to post-op care, several elements can impact the longevity and effectiveness of dental implants.
Critical elements that influence dental implant durability:
- Implant quality.
- Implant design.
- The surgical technique your dentist uses.
- Occlusion (contact between teeth).
- The patient’s systemic health.
- The patient’s oral hygiene habits.
Good candidates for dental implant success are patients who:
- Practice good daily oral hygiene.
- Visit their dentist regularly.
- Do not smoke or use oral tobacco of any kind.
- Limit or avoid alcohol consumption.
- Floss and maintain healthy gums.
- Communicate well with their dental team from pre-planning through post-surgery care.
Your pre-consultation will include a thorough systemic health history, such as diabetes, existing clotting conditions, or heart disease. While risks do exist if the patient has poorly controlled diabetes or heart problems, because of the dental industry’s technical advancements dental implants can actually protect you from heart disease.
If you have certain heart conditions or orthopedic implants, your dentist may prescribe antibiotics before implant surgery to help prevent infection.
Are Dental Implants Successful More Often if Done in Multiple Stages?
Two-stage dental implant procedures definitely have higher success rates but do require you to return for an additional procedure. We prefer not to rush the process. The one-stage dental implant surgery may be ideal for fast aesthetics but requires that you absolutely DO NOT CHEW HARD ON THE DENTAL IMPLANT!
Dental implant surgery is commonly an outpatient surgery performed in stages to allow for healing time between procedures.
The different steps in the process of placing a dental implant involves:
- Possible removal of damaged tooth or teeth.
- Preparing the patient’s Jawbone (which may involve grafting).
- Placing the dental implant.
- Time allotment for bone growth and healing.
- Abutment placement.
- Artificial tooth placement.
The overall time involved can take months from start to finish. Much of that time is essential for healing and waiting for the growth of new bone in your jaw. If rushed, this may impact dental implant success. For many people, specific procedures or certain steps may work to combined and reduce this time frame.
When Dental Implant Success Depends on Jawbone Grafting
The quality of your jawbone is an essential factor in the success rate of your dental implants. The denser and harder your bone is, the better chance your chances are of having a successful implant. There are several ways to measure the quality of your bone.
If your dental implant specialist deems that it is best to transplant a small portion of bone, this requires sufficient time for it to “take”. A bit of your own jawbone many be borrowed from another site in your upper or lower jawbone. This is done to give the dental implant a solid foundation.
If your jawbone isn’t thick enough or too soft, you may need bone grafting before dental implant surgery. It’s amazing how powerful our mouth’s chewing action is! It often takes exerting great pressure on your bone to chew something hard. This means that you need a foundation that can support the implant. Others, you may be faced with fixing a loose or even failed tooth implant. Bone grafts create a solid base for implants.
Both the patient and dentist are involved in better implant treatment planning. The experience of the surgeon in placing dental implants increases the chance that the surgery will be successful and decreases the risk of complications.
Ways to Reduce Risks of Dental Implant Complication:
Educated dental patients are better informed about what to look for in a qualifying dentist. Once you find a top implant specialist in your area, be open about your oral history and expectations. Your full medical history and any possible complications should be fully discussed in advance.
The risk of implant failure can be decreased through:
- Dentists becoming more selective when it comes to who is a good oral implant candidate.
- Increased patient awareness of systemic issues they may carry that have the potential to lead to complications.
- Ongoing, advanced clinician training to gain more predictable planning, placement, and restoration of implant-supported procedures.
Like Dr. Montgomery, dental implant specialists can sustain learning about new procedures or tool options. It is especially helpful to expand dental implant diagnostic methods. The following are suggestions for the more advanced dentist.
Adoption of modern dental technology and diagnostic tools such as:
- Computed axial tomography (CAT) scans.
- Cone-beam (CB) or CBT scans.
- Surgical guides and technical training in the latest in computer treatment planning.
- Consideration of implants designed for immediate loading.
Implant manufacturers recognized the quandaries and concerns that dentists have. This has led to the introduction of implants with macro- and micro-topographical surfaces that are specifically designed to increase primary stability. Modern implant materials and technology also accelerate osseointegration of the implant.
Placing dental implants in extraction sites, while common, is not always possible in order to gain primary stability. The risk of implant failure increases if sufficient bone quantity or quality is lacking to secure the implant in all dimensions during immediate placement fully.
The good news is that implants may still an option for patients with gum disease – even full arch dental implants. Individuals who manage gum disease can almost always qualify for dental implants after undergoing certain treatments and procedures.
The best bone for dental implants is Type 2 bone; it provides the best osseointegration of implants. Type 2 also provides stability through cortical anchorage and has high vascularity, meaning that you implant can integrate fully into the bone and be functional right away.
What is the number one reason for dental implant failure?
The most commonly occurring reason for dental implant failure is infection or abutment failure. Over the course of implant therapy, a bacterial infection that results in implant failures can occur. It is called peri-implantitis when an inflammatory response with bone loss in the soft tissues surrounding implants happens.
If you closely follow your dentist’s instructions, and don’t have secondary health issues, a failed dental implant is rarely a problem.
Implant therapy success relies on a person’s biological healing and integration capabilities. Recent dental technology advancements assist the dentist; however, a person’s overall health and dedication to follow-up care remain central to implant survival.
The concept of peri-implantitis may encompass plaque-induced infection due to plaque build-up on the exposed surfaces of the implant’s biomaterial. Montgomery Dental Care is a leader in ensuring that the patient’s biomechanical environment is the best way to avoid all potential soft tissue problems.
Why is the jawbone’s condition important for dental implant success?
Every dental implant relies on just as much bone to support it as is needed for a natural tooth. This is why bone grafting can become essential after tooth loss. Missing teeth can change your jawbone to the extent that it can’t support the structure of your face anymore.
You may need several months for your transplanted bone to grow sufficient new bone to support your dental implant. Often, patients need only minor bone grafting, which can be accomplished at the same time as the implant surgery. The condition of your jawbone determines how your dentist will proceed.
Once your implant post is placed in your jawbone, the osseointegration (oss-ee-oh-in-tuh-GRAY-shun) process begins. During this time, the jawbone grows into and infuses with the surface of the dental implant. This can take several months (usually 4-6 months); your dentist will assess your healing progress and establish how long this should be in your case.
Overseeing sufficient bone growth after implant placement is a top priority at Woodbury MN’s Montgomery Dental Care.
Is age a factor in dental implant longevity?
Generally, people are encouraged to avoid placing anterior implants at the age of 18 or younger. The age at which bone growth completes varies widely from patient to patient. The common growth spurt happens at 12 years for girls and at 14 years for boys. However, this age can vary by as much as 6 years. Thus, when planning for the placement of dental implants in a child, this problematic age period extends from 9 to 15 years for girls and 11 to 17 years for boys. [1]
Other studies indicate that for some people, the best long-term esthetics will be achieved after reaching the age of 25 when their jawbone has finished growing.
While there is no dental implant age limit for seniors, patients in their late years of life may not find the investment to be appropriate for them. We find that once many folks have retired, they love spending more time socializing, eating food they love, and spending quality time with family and friends. These moments are often more enjoyable with tooth implants, saving them the embarrassment and challenges that dentures may incur.
“No age is too old for dental implants. A reasonably healthy person with even a few years of life expectancy can safely and predictably have dental implants, thereby improving the quality of their life.” – dentalimplantcenter.com [2]
What criteria do medical studies use to determine a failing dental implant?
The most common surgical criteria for failure at the implant level are mobility, pain, radiolucency and loss of peri-implant tissues, as well as the absence or presence of peri-implantitis, suppuration and bleeding. [3]
Tests Your Dentist May Request to Ensure Dental Implant Success
- Computed Tomography (CT) scan: This is a superior scan, a type of x-ray that creates three-dimensional images of your jawbones. It reveals how dense and strong your bones are, in addition to any weak areas.
- Bone Density Test: This test leverages a special x-ray machine to measure how much calcium is in a small sampling of your jawbone. The more calcium that shows up, the denser your bones are.
- Periotest: A periotest measures the vibrations that pass through your teeth and jawbone. This helps inform your dentist of how dense your bones are; it is determined by the number of vibrations that pass through.
Pre-tests help establish your available bone length for implants. Generally, dentists prefer it when an implant can be at least 1.5 mm from an adjacent tooth and 3 mm from an adjacent implant.
Once your implant surgery is performed, there are other things you can do to reduce implant failure risks.
How can I Protect my Dental Implant from Failure?
The earlier any post implant surgery issue is treated, the better your chances of success.
Immediately after the procedure listen carefully as your dentist gives you instruction and advice. With implants, in addition to your dental professional’s advice, these five tips will reduce your chances of developing an infection as the wound in the mouth heals.
- Like routine care for your natural teeth, keep your implants, artificial teeth, and gum tissue clean. Crowns and Bridge floss is specially designed to help you get under and around dental implants. It has two stiff nylon ends and a fuzzy center which gently cleans the dental implant surface and the porcelain that touches the gumline without being too aggressive.
- Your dentist may recommend an interdental brush that slides between teeth to help clean the nooks and crannies around teeth, gums, and posts.
- Avoid eating food items that have a greater potential of getting stuck around the healing area (corn, nuts with the hulls on, sticky foods, etc.)
- Keep your follow-up dental appointments.
- Use an oral rinse regularly. Infection can occur postoperatively if plaque and tartar are not removed from teeth and gums on a daily basis.
- Avoid strenuous exercise immediately after your implants are placed.
Whether you have dental implant surgery in one or multiple stages, be aware of what typical discomforts you may expect, such as:
- Facial or gums swelling.
- Noticeable bruising on your skin and gums.
- A reasonable pain level at the implant site.
- Minor bleeding.
You may be given pain medications or antibiotics after dental implant surgery to take home with you. If swelling, discomfort, excessive bleeding, or any other issue worsens in the days following surgery, contact your oral specialist immediately.
A straightforward dental implant, Dental patients with good bones and who do not require extensive soft tissue surgery can anticipate a pain level between two and three in the initial 24 to 48 hours. Common over-the-counter medications such as Tylenol or Advil will manage any discomfort they feel.
Will my dental implants fail if I smoke cigarettes?
Dental implant survival rate for smokers will depend on the duration of tobacco use, amount, and type of tobacco use.
Cigarette smoke is widely known to contain harmful chemicals that may damage a person’s gums and bone tissue around the implant. Smoking also impairs healing and alcohol has been found to decrease the chances of osseointegration. Both are common causes of tooth sensitivity and implant failure.
Simply stated, you want to give your implant the maximum ability to heal properly. Prevention is the best way to avoid other complications.
The National Institute of Health reports the ill effects of tobacco on oral health include periodontal, mucosal, salivary glands, implants, and oral cancer. [4] These health-related realities can help a smoker gain the willpower to quit.
What is the success rate for implants when a person has no teeth?
“Fully Edentulous” (when a person is missing all of their teeth) dental implants have remarkably improved how the teeth of individuals who are edentulous or partially edentulous can be restored. Implants for the rehabilitation and retention of dental and facial prostheses have graduated from a phase of wishful thinking to one of the most gratifying experiences for patients and treating fraternity alike.
“From 4.3% after five years to 26.4% after 10 years, the frequency of connection-related problems (screw loosening or fracture) increased (in patients who are fully edentulous). “Of the 9% of restorations that were cemented, loss of retention of the restorations occurred in 6.2% within five years and 24.9% within 10 years.” – The Etiology and Management of Dental Implant Failure: A Review by NIH
The high dental implant survival rates reported for single and multiple missing tooth replacements demonstrate the effectiveness of implant-supported restorations as an essential approach for oral rehabilitation.
Table Showing Causes of Early and Late Dental Implant Failure
AIDS: acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
| Causes of early failure | Causes of late failure |
| Poor bone quality and quantity, systemic diseases such as uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, AIDS, osteoporosis, medications such as corticosteroids and bisphosphonates, smoking, infection, lack of primary stability, surgical trauma | Excessive loading, peri-implantitis, bruxism, teeth grinding at night time, retained subgingival dental cement, inadequate prosthetic construction, traumatic occlusion |
Dental implants open your options back up by offering you one of the most natural ways to replace teeth. They empower you to gain a permanent restoration for recovering or improving your former smile. In this way, the value of dental implants outweighs the cost.
Most people discover that dental implants are a worthwhile investment due to their ability to replicate most of the characteristics of natural teeth.
Read more about why the advantages of dental implants outweigh the disadvantages. Also, here are details on how to care for your dental implant restorations.
CONCLUSION: Increase Your Chances of a Successful Oral Implant Experience
In conclusion, the benefits of dental implants are extensive and impact you in more than one area of your life. While implant failure may occur, most problems can be avoided by taking the above precautionary steps. If you have more questions about what to consider before embarking on an oral implant, schedule a consultation with Marc L. Montgomery, DDS.
Call 651-738-1880 and gain the best in class dental implant care!
Resources
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7518499/
[2] https://www.dentalimplantcenter.com/blog/am-i-too-old-for-implants-is-age-a-factor/
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7705497/
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9875717/
