Precise planning of treatment with appropriate education, diagnostics, and aftercare is important for successful dental implant treatment. A reputable Oral Surgeon in Cranford NJ should perform the surgery. Here is a short brief of what implantation procedures consist of.
The right dentist
The placement of dental implants should only be performed by a specialized and certified dentist. However, the term “implantologist” is not a professional or specialist name and, thus, it is not protected by international law. Ultimately, every dentist can call themselves an implantologist, regardless of his or her qualifications.
Therefore, pay attention either to the title “Master of Science in Oral Implantology” or to the term “focus on implantology” because these are reviewed by medical societies and require a certain number of interventions – including at least 200 set dental implants in total and 50 dental implants annually. Other patients’ experiences can also help you find the right dentist to place your dental implants.
First contact
First, the Oral Surgeon in Cranford NJ will ask the patient a series of questions pertaining to pre-existing conditions or medication use. Then he or she examines the entire oral cavity thoroughly. Imaging techniques such as X-rays, computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging complete their preliminary investigation. As part of the so-called pretreatment, diseased teeth or gingivitis (periodontitis) are treated before implantation.
Bone formation
Since dental implants are firmly anchored in the jawbone, the success of the implantation depends, among other things, on the jawbone’s mass. If it is too low, the dentist may suggest a bone graph. In this case, the bone needed can be built using procedures such as jaw spreading, sinus lift, inserting pieces of bone, for example from the pelvic bone, or by administering bone replacement materials.
The operation
First, the Westfield Oral Surgery specialist opens the mucosa over the jawbone with a small incision. After drilling a small hole, the dental implants are placed into the bone, and the mucosa is then closed with sutures. Alternatively, the implant can heal without suture (called open healing).
Dentures are usually placed only after the dental implants attached (two-time procedure) have healed, which improves the chances of recovery of the implant over the direct attachment of the dentures (one-time procedure). Overall, the surgery takes about an hour and is most comparable to pulling a wisdom tooth. The sutures are removed by the dentist after about one to three weeks.
