After spending way too much time poking at it with your tongue and fingers, you can’t lie to yourself anymore: your dental implant is loose. You thought it felt off for the last few days, but now you’re able to see it move in the mirror. Does this mean it has to come out? Do you need to start the process completely over? Not necessarily, but the next steps you take will determine whether or not your dental implant in Massapequa can be saved.
Step 1: Call Your Dentist
This might seem like a no-brainer, but every day, thousands of dentists see thousands of patients clearly dealing with dental issues who waited weeks, months, or years to reach out. Most hope that things will get better on their own, but spoiler alert, they almost never do.
At worst, you see your dentist, they tell you everything is fine, and you now have peace of mind. Or, if there is a problem, getting to them quickly allows for timely intervention that can make the difference between losing or keeping your implant.
Step 2: Avoid Chewing with the Implant
If your implant is already loose, best not to make it worse, right? On top of not chewing with the tooth in question, it’s wise to be very, very gentle when brushing and flossing so as to not make the issue worse.
Step 3: Professional Treatment
When you see your dentist, they’ll perform a visual screening as well as take X-rays to evaluate the underlying bone around the implant. Based on their findings, they may take one of three courses of action:
- Deeply clean the area to remove bacteria so the implant is able to form a better bond with the surrounding bone.
- Remove the implant and either place the same post or a new one so it has a better chance to heal properly and become stable.
- Remove the implant and apply periodontal treatment and/or a bone graft to create the ideal environment for an implant to succeed.
Needless to say, this isn’t the kind of thing you can do on your own, and waiting will only allow the problem to progress. That’s why getting to your dentist as quickly as possible is so important.
While the thought of needing to have your implant removed and redone might be frustrating, bear in mind that implants (overwhelmingly) have a 30+ year lifespan, so this episode should just be a blip in the scheme of things. And, the recovery process will help you and your dentist learn what you can do to avoid this kind of problem in the future.
About the Author
A staple in the Massapequa Park community for four decades, Dr. Allan Mohr is one of the leading implant and cosmetic dentists in the country. On top of helping thousands of patients over the years, he is also an in-demand speaker, educator, and trainer with 3,000+ hours of continuing education under his belt. His philosophy is to give his patients exactly what they want so they are overjoyed with their results.
You can see a few examples of Dr. Mohr’s smile transformations with dental implants here, and if you’re worried about your new tooth, just click here to schedule an appointment or call (516)541-7344.