5 Things You Shouldn’t Do After Dental Implant Surgery

Dental implants are a big investment. They have the potential to last for decades with the proper maintenance. The first step in your journey to a complete smile involves your dental implant surgery. Titanium posts are surgically placed into your jawbone to replicate tooth roots, so you can expect there to be a bit of a recovery. Don’t let anything compromise the success of your procedure. Here are 5 things you do NOT want to do after your placement surgery.

1. Don’t Smoke

It can be difficult to kick the habit, but you’ll want to put down the cigarettes. The overall success of the procedure relies on your jawbone fusing to the posts through a process called osseointegration. Smoking can affect the healing process, increasing the risk of failure. If you want your investment to thrive, it’s best to stop smoking permanently to avoid preventable complications later, like an infection.

2. Don’t Rinse Excessively

You’ll need to keep your mouth clean while it heals; however, don’t rinse vigorously for at least 48 hours after your procedure. Excessive rinsing can cause the implant site to bleed. Although you’ll still want to rinse, do so gently and let the liquid run out of your mouth into the sink.

3. Don’t Exercise

You’ll have to skip the gym for a few days. Intense exercising can increase your blood flow, which can cause bleeding at the implant site. After enough healing has occurred, your dentist will give the go-ahead to get back to your fitness routine.

4. Don’t Drink Through a Straw

Your mouth is going to be sore for a few days. It might make sense to use a straw to make it easier to drink, but that could lead to a painful condition called dry socket. Suction can dislodge the blood clot

Is a Dental Savings Plan Right for You?

November 25, 2021

Some people are under the impression that dental care is expensive, and that dental insurance is the only way to afford it. However, the truth is that keeping your smile may not be as costly as you think, even if you don’t have insurance. A dental savings plan is a popular way to minimize the price of necessary services. Let’s talk about how such plans usually work.

What Is a Dental Savings Plan?

An in-house dental savings plan is an arrangement wherein you pay an annual fee to your dentist. In return, you get to enjoy discounted rates on most (or all) of the services offered by that particular practice. Most plans include basic preventive care, such as X-Rays, cleanings, and exams, for no extra fee. If you need restorative care or want to get some cosmetic work done on your smile, you can expect to pay significantly less than patients who do not have the plan.

Dental Savings Plans: Pros and Cons

Some of the top advantages of most dental savings plans include:

  • Anyone can sign up at any time.
  • There are no deductibles, waiting periods, or annual maximums.
  • Discounts apply to services that insurance does not usually cover, including popular cosmetic treatments.
  • The price for a savings plan is usually quite manageable, and the preventive care benefits alone make the plan a great value.

Of course, a savings plan does also have a few drawbacks. For example, the discounts it provides are usually less than what you would enjoy with a traditional insurance policy. Also, if you travel a lot and have a dental emergency while you are away from home, you won’t have any way to use your discount because most plans are exclusive to a single practice.

Should You Sign Up for a

Bone Grafts for Dental Implants

Tooth loss is a common issue that affects millions of Americans throughout the country. Fortunately, losing a tooth doesn’t mean that you have to go the rest of your life with an unsightly gap in your smile. Dental implants are a preferred tooth replacement option because they have so many benefits that you can’t get anywhere else. However, not all patients are ready to get their implants right away. Some need to undergo a bone graft beforehand. Read on to learn why this is the case.

Why Does Missing Teeth Lead to Bone Loss?

The root of your tooth stimulates your jaw whenever you chew, therefore keeping it strong and healthy. However, when you lose teeth, your jawbone isn’t receiving this same stimulation. Over time, the bone tissue will be reabsorbed by the body. As time goes on, the more the bone deteriorates. This can cause difficulties when it comes to eating and speaking. It can even affect the future alignment of your surrounding teeth.

What Is Bone Grafting?

A bone graft works by transplanting bone tissue into the jaw. This bone can come from another part of the mouth, a different part of the body, or by a human or animal donor. Sometimes, synthetic material is also used. Once this new piece of bone is placed in the correct area, it will seal itself to the old bone tissue in the areas that you need it. This is a relatively minor procedure, and patients are generally sedated during the process. Most patients who receive bone grafts report that the experience was pain-free.

Why Do You Need to Have a Bone Graft?

Needing a bone graft before dental implants is fairly common. This technique is required when a patient doesn’t have a sufficient amount of healthy bone tissue in their

Finding the Best Implant Dentist

Are you looking to replace your missing teeth? One of the great things about today is the fact that you don’t need to settle for gaps in your smile. There are a variety of different tooth replacement options out there to choose from, like dental implants. Implants have become a preferred method by dentists and patients alike because of their numerous benefits. However, you want to pick an implant dentist that you can trust. Continue reading to learn what you should look for when choosing one.

Experience in Dental Implant Surgery

Pick an implant dentist who is very familiar with the dental implant placement procedure. You want to see a dentist who has done this many times in the past with excellent results. When you choose a dentist who has a lot of previous experience, you will feel a lot better when it comes to the day of your surgery.

Advanced Dental Training

It is advantageous to choose a dentist who has taken advantage of additional educational opportunities in the area of implant dentistry. One great way a dentist can do this is by becoming involved with professional dental institutes and organizations. This way, you know that your dentist is on top of all the latest techniques and technologies.

Patient Reviews

To learn more about what you can expect from a particular dentist, you should take a look at some online reviews. You want to know what previous patients thought about the process of getting dental implants with the dentist in question. Look for a dentist who has plenty of detailed, quality, and positive reviews. If you see a lot of them, this is a great sign.

Before and After Photos

Dental implants help to restore the health of your smile, but you want to like the way they look