Dental Implant?

[snapppyd]

I recently had to have a tooth extracted due to an infection. I now have to wait 5 months to begin the implant procedure, have to wait for bone to regenerate. (I am over 60).

My question is, how painful are dental implants? I got through having the tooth pulled, first one in my life, I still have my wisdom teeth.

Can anyone here share their story of dental implants, the good, the bad and the ugly? Thanks!!!

 

[Pamlur]

I had one last year, and there was no pain involved, other than when the base for the implant is screwed up into the bone. But that isn't bad and it doesn't last very long at all. My only issue was that it was a front tooth and I am in business; my beloved dentist contrived a way to glue a fake tooth in, and told me NOT to bite on anything.

 

[mnrose]

I just had this done. Tooth pulled last March, wait 3.5 months. Implant done July. Wait 3 more months (minimum). To maximize my dental benefits, I'm waiting for the crown to be done next calendar year. Once the implant is in, you can wait indefinitely.

In terms of pain, it wasn't bad at all. I'd say it was "sore" for a day or two following, but that's it. I took ibuprofen, and that was all I needed. I've had every dental treatment known practically, and this was relatively "easy" as things go. Biggest PITA is that you are to avoid "chewing" on the implant for 5-6 weeks. That's hard. Especially when it's no longer sore to "remind" you not to chew there. I thought the extraction was much worse than the actual implant.

 

[snapppyd]

Thanks for the responses. The no chewing sounds hard!

 

[daannzzz]

I had one at 60 years old and the pulling of the tooth was the worst part as it cam out in many pieces. The cleaning and drilling of the bone was tiresome because it took a while but it didn't hurt much. Definitely was sore afterward but nothing ibuprofen didn't work on. The installation of the implant didn't hurt but jaw was achy from holding it open.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I have two of them. The waiting between the extraction to finally getting the crown put on seemed forever. But they have worked fine for me. I don't recall any real pain or problems with either one. I had the same oral surgeon remove the old root and put in the implant and my dentist put on the crown.

The only real pain was to my wallet since my insurance didn't cover much of it.

 

[cinnaminny]

They didn't do a bone graft?? I am not trying to worry you, but while you're waiting, you should go talk to a periodontist who specializes in this. (if this is who you are not already using)

I am in the process now. But I did not trust our regular dentist to do it and went to a periodontist who is a specialist in this. I've read quite a few horror story's. My husband stayed with our dentist and it didn't work out as well for him, now he is using my periodontist.

I had an invisible crack in my tooth. It had a slight infection and a crack that no one could see, it was eating away the bone above that tooth.

They took my tooth out and immediately filled the space with some sort of powdered bone and it grew into actual bone. This is called a bone graft. We have known a few people (from work) who did not do this part of the procedure and it didn't work out well for them in the end, as their new implants slipped right out of their mouths. Two separate people who didn't have a bone graft. I am not saying this to scare you, I am saying this because you could use this time maybe to up your chances of success. I really would go see someone about a bone graft particularly at your age.

I don't have my crown yet, but I do have the actual implant placed and it is fine and does not hurt at all. It is healing and becoming one and afterwards I will have the crown placed.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

Its a different experience for everyone.
If yours is pretty straight forward it will likely be pretty easy.
Meanwhile my dad went through literally years of treatment to get implants because he needed bone grafts and then needed to heal and he at one point had a flapper for his front teeth and was miserable not being able to eat much.
The really unfortunate thing is that he stopped smiling in pics and now even with nice teeth you can barely get him to crack a smile because he just got so used to not showing his teeth.
Also he is always experiencing a problem of his implants coming undone from the piece that is screwed into his bone so every few months he is contacting the dentist to get in and fix it.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

I have two of them. The waiting between the extraction to finally getting the crown put on seemed forever. But they have worked fine for me. I don't recall any real pain or problems with either one. I had the same oral surgeon remove the old root and put in the implant and my dentist put on the crown.

The only real pain was to my wallet since my insurance didn't cover much of it.

We are lucky to have a dental school near by that basically cuts the price in half from what you'd pay OOP without dental coverage.
All the time and treatment my dad had would have cots $30,000 but cot him $15,000. When its over the course of like 5 years due to all the wait time in between procedures it didn't hurt the wallet as much.

 

[longboard55]

I did one, where they did the extraction and screw in one sitting, hurt like hell but pain killers never seem to work with me. Now that it is done, I could even tell you what tooth it is. Feels natural

 

[easyas123]

The really unfortunate thing is that he stopped smiling in pics and now even with nice teeth you can barely get him to crack a smile because he just got so used to not showing his teeth.
Also he is always experiencing a problem of his implants coming undone from the piece that is screwed into his bone so every few months he is contacting the dentist to get in and fix it.

I had a bit of a different experience, but same result. I was born (or didn't develop - end result same) without adult teeth, with the exception of two bottom back teeth. Long story short, I had many years of braces, many baby teeth removed and at age 19 I had dental implants in both my upper & lower jaw.
I'm 46 now and they are still in and hanging in there. I know in the next 5 or so years I am going to need to get them replaced probably, they have for sure lasted longer than any of the dental specialists who worked on me thought they would...I shudder to think of the cost! But yeah - as a teenager I never smiled and to this day I still get "smile!" yelled at me when taking pictures. I think I am, but really I'm not, just like when I was a kid. Trying to hide my god - awful teeth.

 

[jiminyC_fan]

I had it done for two teeth at the same time. I needed to regrow bone. It took a total of one year from start to finish. I definitely recommend going to a reputable oral surgeon. I would never consider one like you see on TV where it is all done in one sitting. I had a bridge that broke down and took out the tooth next to it. I wish I would have skipped the bridge and went straight to implants. I would never have needed a second implant. I have had zero complications with the implants and would do it again in a heartbeat.

 

[neverlandsky]

My mom has had it done. It was a 3 phase process for her. Not an immediately load. On the other side of it, she loves it. During the process of it, not so much. Very painful.
For me, I have that rare case luck in everything medical/dental. I was ineligible for an implant due to my main jaw nerve being way too close thanks to 3D scan that I decided to pay for out of pocket that insurance didn't cover. Glad I did too. So I'm currently no tooth. Definitely make sure you get a 3D scan of the area even if it's not covered by your insurance so you know for sure you're not going to run into any nerves.

 

[Micca]

I had my first extraction of my life last year (other than my wisdom teeth which were removed while I was in high school.) I was worried but the procedure wasn't any worse than a root canal*, and it didn't take as long. Based on my dentist's advice, I just got a fake tooth. I too am over 60--my dentist said if I was 30 years younger that the implant would be the way to go, but it was much cheaper to just get the false tooth (and it was still plenty pricey.) Besides, it a molar in the back of my mouth, my dentist and his assistant will be the only people who will ever see it.

* I have a fantastic dentist. There is essentially no pain to root canals, he's the best.

 

[snapppyd]

Yes, he did a bone graft. I asked if the implant would take because they said the infection was eroding the bone. He said "we are growing a whole new bone". I checked my bill and it says bone regeneration, graft, etc.

 

[mnrose]

Yes, he did a bone graft. I asked if the implant would take because they said the infection was eroding the bone. He said "we are growing a whole new bone". I checked my bill and it says bone regeneration, graft, etc.

Hoping the graft takes for you! It's a process to learn whether it's worked. My husband had some difficulty getting his graft to take. I had no issues at all. I guess it depends? All I know is that I'm now part cow, and feel an inexplicable desire to moo (seriously, they use bovine bone to do the grafting!).

 

[snapppyd]

Thank you.

 

[NotUrsula]

One thing that often does not get mentioned, and was not mentioned to me until I complained about it: the taste generated by the bone grafts. (OS said, "Yes, that's normal.) It is a godawful rancid flavor that makes everything you eat taste bad, and it lasts for quite a while. It made me so nauseous that I was vomiting; rather like having morning sickness.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I recently had to have a tooth extracted due to an infection. I now have to wait 5 months to begin the implant procedure, have to wait for bone to regenerate. (I am over 60).

My question is, how painful are dental implants? I got through having the tooth pulled, first one in my life, I still have my wisdom teeth.

Can anyone here share their story of dental implants, the good, the bad and the ugly? Thanks!!!

I had an implant done (failed root canal with a crown). After removing the remaining root of the bad tooth, I had to wait 6 months to be sure it was completely healed. I also had to stop taking my osteoporosis medication. Once healed fully, they put an implant into the jaw (general anesthetic). 3 more months of healing. Then they had to do open the area (yes, additional surgery), to place the base of the new crown in. Once healed, my regular dentist took an impression and created a crown that's cemented onto the base.

I don't recall any bad pain. Of course there was some pain, but, since I opted to be fully unconscious during both procedures that required cutting into my gum, the pain was fairly minimal. Only used ibuprofen for it.

 

[DisneyTarheel]

In addition to the nerve that runs below bottom teeth, you also need to be careful about your sinuses being too close to top teeth. A good 3D scan should help the oral surgeon determine the risks of either (depending on where your extracted tooth is).