Thinking about getting dental implants? Wait a minute. While most patients can receive these prosthetics without issue, some hurdles may stand in your way without your realizing it. Whether it’s oral health concerns, poor jawbone support and stability, or other similar roadblocks, it’s important to understand how these can affect your future smile. Keep reading to explore three issues that can keep you from getting dental implants and what you and your dentist can do about them.
Which Factors Can Prevent Dental Implant Placement?
Your dentist decides whether you can receive dental implants, so if they discover any of these issues during your consultation, it may mean considering alternative treatment options:
- Lack of Jawbone Density: For dental implants to thrive, they need a strong jawbone to hold them in place. Without enough support, they can fail. If you’ve been without a full set of teeth for some time, your jawbone has likely weakened over time. The only way to fix this is with a bone graft.
- Health Conditions: Diabetes, autoimmune disorders, cancer, and other conditions that weaken your immune system can put you at a disadvantage when getting dental implants. If these medical conditions are not closely monitored or managed, your artificial teeth may fail because they can’t fuse with your jawbone. Healing often takes longer with a compromised immune system.
- Poor Oral Health: Untreated gum disease affects real and artificial teeth, so receiving dental implants without treating this common oral health problem is a recipe for disaster. Healthy gums are essential to prevent infection from reaching the bone that holds your implants in place.
How Can Your Dentist Help Make Dental Implants Possible?
Even if you are dealing with one or more of these issues, there’s still hope. Some patients may need to consider alternatives, like dentures or dental bridges, but during your consultation, your dentist will explain whether steps can be taken to make dental implants possible.
For example, if you have untreated gum disease, your dentist will recommend periodontal treatment to remove bacteria and promote effective gum healing. If you lack jawbone density, a bone graft can rebuild its volume and stability so that dental implants can fuse and support your custom restoration successfully.
If it’s a bigger health condition that is the problem, you, your dentist, and your doctor may need to develop a plan that focuses on treating your health issue in a way that allows for dental implant placement.
Just because dental implants may not be possible right away doesn’t mean all hope is lost. You and your dentist can restore your smile by addressing initial issues so that you become a good candidate for this long-lasting treatment.
About the Author
Dr. Keith Byron offers general and specialized care in a state-of-the-art environment. With more than 25 years of experience, he earned his Doctor of Dental Medicine from the University of Connecticut. His prosthodontic expertise allows him to provide start-to-finish dental implants in-house, so patients with tooth loss can stay in one convenient location for treatment. If you are interested in these prosthetics, visit our website or call (603) 437–8204 to schedule an appointment.
