Dental Implants can still get cavities and infections. In order to keep your implants infection-free, they need to be cleaned correctly. Since implants are made from different materials than your natural teeth, they cannot be cleaned in the same way that you cleaned your natural teeth. Here are tips from Smile Solutions PC on how to care for your new implants.
Daily Brushing
Brush twice a day in order to remove bacteria that can cause plaque. Ideally, you should always brush after eating. Make sure to brush all sides of the implant. Some implants can be cleaned with a soft toothbrush and tartar-fighting toothpaste. Other implants need to use an inter-dental brush or other tooth cleaning aids because a toothbrush will not be able to do the job properly. Do not use toothpaste with baking soda or whitening ingredients as these are far too harsh for implants.
Daily Flossing
Flossing helps ensure that bacteria will not grow in between your teeth or implants. Use unwaxed floss or dental tape for implants. Do not tug at the floss. Floss should easily slide through your teeth or around your implants. If you have problems flossing your implants, talk to your doctor. You may need to use a water flosser if getting floss in between your teeth becomes a problem.
Avoid Hard Foods
Implants can crack or break if you eat very hard foods like very crunchy bread, ice cubes or hard candy. Also, stop chewing on non-food items like pencils or pens. If you chew on your fingernails, this can also damage your implants. Talk to your dentist about how to stop chewing your fingernails.
Warning Signs That You Need a Dentist Right Away
If the skin around the Dental Implants is red, angry or swollen, then you need to go to the dentist at once. This could be an infection or peri-implantitis, which infects bones and your remaining teeth as well as gums. Black gums are also a bad sign whether it is accompanied by swelling or pain or not. Your gums should always be pink. Also, call the dentist whenever you feel the implant shift or come loose. Bacteria can get under a loose implant and cause infection. You can also connect them on Facebook.
