Understanding The Dental Implant Process From Start To Finish

If you’re thinking about getting a dental implant in Highland Park, Uptown or elsewhere in Dallas, White Dental Spa is where you want to be. Dr. Quinn Liu and Dr. E-Jan Tung specialize in minimally-invasive general dentistry and implants. Not sure what to expect from the process? We’ll break the entire dental implant process down for you in this quick article.

Your Initial Exam And Implant Planning

First, you’ll need to schedule an appointment with Dr. E-Jan Tung or Dr. Quinn Liu, to ensure that you’re a good candidate for dental implants. They will examine your teeth, gums and jaw, and determine if your mouth is healthy enough for a dental implant. If you’re a good candidate, they will begin planning your procedure immediately, and you’ll come back once you’re prepared for surgery.

(Optional) Extractions, Bone Grafting And Sinus Lifts

If your tooth has not yet been extracted, it will need to be removed, and the socket will have to heal for 3-6 months before your next appointment.

In addition, if our doctors find that your jaw has weakened due to tooth loss, you may need a sinus lift or a bone graft. These procedures are used to add more bone material to your jaw, in order to support the dental implant properly. It will usually take somewhere between 3-12 months to heal from a bone graft or a sinus lift.

Your First Appointment – Placing The Implant

At your first appointment, your gums and teeth will be numbed, and you can be sedated, if you wish. One of our Dallas dentists will open up a small opening in your gum line, and place your dental implant precisely where the root of your missing tooth used to be.

Then, the area is sutured shut, and a healing abutment or “collar” may be placed around your implant, to prevent the gums from growing over the implant while it heals.

Understanding The Healing And Osseointegration Process

After your first appointment, you’ll be sent home. Your implant should feel normal after about 7-14 days. However, you will have to wait about 3-6 months before your implant can be placed.

This is because of the natural process of “osseointegration.” The titanium used for dental implants has the unique ability to bond permanently with the surrounding oral and jaw tissue, and this process takes between 3-6 months or longer.

You can only have your implant placed once the implant has healed completely, and become permanently integrated into your mouth. You may need to schedule one or more follow-ups with White Dental Spa to check your progress.

Your Next Appointment – Placing The Implant Restoration

After your implant has healed completely, you’ll come in for your second appointment. Dr. Tung or Dr. Liu may need to make a small incision in the gum tissue to expose the implant. Then, the healing abutment or collar is removed, and a permanent abutment is placed. Finally, a dental crown that’s built to look just like your natural tooth will be cemented in place, completing the procedure.

Get Started Today – Restore Your Smile With Dental Implants

Dental implants look and feel natural, require no special care, and help halt bone loss and protect your oral health. So don’t wait. If you are missing one or more teeth in Turtle Creek, Oaklawn or anywhere else in the Dallas area, schedule an appointment with White Dental Spa today. See the White Difference for yourself!

Call (214) 484-1064 for an appointment, or visit our office. Our address is 3878 Oak Lawn Avenue Suite #310, Dallas, Texas 75219. Don’t wait another second. Get your oral exam today, and see if dental implants are right for you.