3 Reasons Dental Implants Fail

According to the Dental Implant Cost Guide, 95% of dental implants are successful, but before you rush into getting one, make sure you talk to your dentist about it. The success rate is extremely high for several reasons, and one of these reasons is because dentists know when to use them and when to avoid using them. Here are some of the reasons dental implants fail, and you may be able to avoid going dental implant failure this if you know these things in advance.

Smoking

If you are a smoker, your dentist may tell you that you are not a good candidate for a dental implant. Smoking interferes with dental implants in several ways, including that it:

• Slows down the healing process – Your mouth needs time to heal, but smoking will slow this process down, which could make your mouth more susceptible to infections.
• Leads to gum disease – People that smoke have a greater chance of developing gum disease. Gum disease causes numerous problems, including receding gums. When the gums recede, it makes it harder for an implant to stay in place.
• Can trigger an infection – Smoking can cause weakening of the immune system. A weak immune system makes it harder for the body to fight infections, which is why smokers have a greater chance of getting infections when they have any type of dental work completed.

Before you get a dental implant, your dentist may suggest that you stop smoking, or at least stop temporarily before having the procedure. Smoking can cause the failure of an implant, so if you smoke you may want to think twice about getting this done.

Lack of Jawbone

Another step a dentist will take before agreeing to complete a dental implant is a thorough examination of the bone. A sufficient amount of jawbone is necessarily for an implant because this is what holds the implant in place. If your dentist feels that you do not have enough jawbone, he or she will hesitate in completing the procedure.

The dentist may suggest not getting an implant, or he or she might recommend getting bone grafting. Bone grafting involves adding additional bone to the jaw, and this is designed to give the implant the proper amount of support.

After additional bone is grafted in place and has healed, the dentist could then install the implant. When this is done, the implant will need to fully fuse with the jawbone. As this happens, it creates a bond that is extremely strong because the bones become permanently attached. This is referred to as osseointegration, but osseointegration can fail, which can lead to problems with an implant.

Failed osseointegration occurs when the grafted bone and the existing bone do not completely fuse together. The result of this can be a loose implant. Fixing this problem will require removing the implant so it can be reinstalled or replaced.

Body Rejects It

The third thing to be aware of is that your body may reject the implant for a number of different reasons. If your body rejects it, the implant may come loose or you may develop an infection in your mouth. Rejection of implants can occur from:

• Infections – If you develop an infection in your mouth, you may experience problems. Infections happen for many reasons; however, they happen often from poor oral care. If you get an implant, you must brush and floss your teeth daily.
• Lack of healing time – If a dentist rushes an implant, it could also lead to problems that may cause the implant to fail. This primarily occurs when an implant is installed too soon after bone grafting is completed.
• Body not recognizing the material – There are times when a person's body cannot handle having a foreign material in it. Because of this, the person's body will force the implant out of place.
• An allergic reaction – While most people are not allergic to titanium, some people may be, and this reaction is enough to cause failure of an implant.

Dental implants work out great for most people and they are a great option for replacing teeth, but it is always important to let a dentist decide if this is right for you. To learn more, make an appointment with a dentist that offers dental implants.