Pflugerville Dental Implants
DOES ANY OF THE FOLLOWING RELATE TO YOU?
You have dentures but you hate wearing them
You’re embarrassed to smile in public
You’ve lost 1-2 teeth over time
You are in constant pain
YOU CAN FINALLY HAVE A FULL MOUTH OF TEETH THAT LOOK AND FEEL NATURAL…
How do Dental Implants Work?
Dental implants replace broken or missing teeth. A natural tooth gets replaced with a natural-looking artificial tooth. These artificial teeth are made to look just like your healthy teeth and work just like them, too. Plus, an artificial tooth and dental implant remain much stronger than a crown, also. And, a dental implant can last you for a lifetime if you take proper care of it by flossing and brushing. Whether you need one replaced or an entire mouthful of teeth, we can help you keep your beautiful smile or improve the smile you already have.
How does the Dental Implant Process Work?
Call us to schedule an initial consultation. During this consultation, we can take a look at your oral health and provide you with treatment options for replacement teeth that work for you and your lifestyle. We even offer sedation for our patients to remain comfortable while the procedure is being done. You can also meet our pleasant staff and discuss payment and insurance options.
How Does The Dental Implant Process Work?
The process of dental implant surgery will take multiple appointments over a period of 3-6 months, but it can take longer if you need additional pre-treatment surgeries like bone grafting, or tooth extraction, or alveoloplasty (bone ridge smoothing).
To begin, you’ll schedule a consultation with Dr. Chris Mun at Pflugerville Family Dentistry. He will perform a comprehensive oral exam complete with x-rays to determine if you’re a good candidate for a dental implant. If you’re approved, he will use this information to begin creating your implant surgery plan.
You’ll come back in a few weeks to have your dental implant placed. At this appointment, Dr. Mun will begin by cleaning and numbing the surgical area. You can also be sedated, if you wish. Once the area is numb, he will create an opening in the gum and jaw tissue, based on your implant surgery plan.
Then, Dr. Mun will place your dental implant, which is a small rod made of titanium. It will be placed precisely in this opening, and then the area will be cleaned and sutured to promote proper healing. This process is repeated if you’re getting multiple implants. Then, you’ll be sent home to rest and recover.
It will take about 2 weeks to heal from the initial placement of your implant. However, the process of “osseointegration,” which bonds your jaw bone to your implant permanently, will take about 3-6 months.
During this recovery time, you’ll come to our office several times for follow-ups with Dr. Mun. He will ensure you’re healing properly, and take impressions and images of your teeth to begin creating your implant-supported restoration, such as a dental crown.
After your mouth has healed, but before your final appointment, you’ll need to come into our office so that Dr. Mun can attach an abutment to your implant. This abutment attaches your implant to the restoration, and holds it in place.
Finally, you’ll come in for your last appointment with Dr. Mun. He will check the fit of your implant restoration to make sure that everything looks good, then bond it into place permanently. Then, you’ll be sent home with a brand-new smile.
How Long Can Dental Implants Last?
For all intents and purposes, dental implants are permanent. Once the metal implant has been placed in your gums and jaw bone, it will bond with the tissue permanently. The typical lifespan for an implant is 30+ years, and it’s common to keep your implant for the rest of your life.
However, your dental implant restoration may not last quite as long. The implant lasts a very long time because it’s not exposed to wear & tear from chewing and biting. In contrast, dental implant restorations like crowns, bridges, or implant-supported dentures do go through a lot of wear & tear.
It’s common to have your implant restoration replaced after about 10 or 15 years, but this can vary. It’s important to get regular six-month consultations at Pflugerville Family Dentistry so that Dr. Chris Mun can check your implant and restoration, and ensure that they are in great shape.