1 Tooth or Full Dental Implants in Los Angeles, CA

If you’re missing one or more teeth, but otherwise have healthy gums and overall good oral health, you’re probably a good candidate for dental implants.

A dental implant and a crown can replace a missing tooth in a very natural way. If you’re missing several teeth, you may want to consider dental implants with a bridge as a way to hold loose dentures in place more securely.

Even if you’re already wearing dentures, adding two or four dental implants can make the dentures (especially lower dentures) substantially tighter so that they won’t move around while you’re eating or speaking.

Even if you have a medical condition or need to take medication, you can usually still get implants. However, there are still some things to keep in mind, such as:

Gum Health

Since the dental implant has to be anchored into the gum tissue and jawbone, people who have extensive gingivitis or gum disease have to receive treatment before their dental implant procedure. If the gum disease is especially severe, bone augmentation or bone replacement might be necessary.

Immune System

The dental implant procedure involves cutting out gum tissue as well as drilling into the jawbones. That’s why a person’s ability to heal properly is part of the criteria for selecting good candidates for dental implants. For example, individuals with a weakened immune system (i.e. those with HIV or taking immunosuppressants) may struggle to heal their wounds after the procedure, which can lead to higher likelihood of infection.

Lifestyle

The lifestyle of some patients may also make it more difficult for them to recover from a dental implant procedure. People who regularly drink a lot of alcohol or smoke heavily, for example, could have weakened immune systems that would slow down the recovery process.

Medications

People who are being medicated for strokes and high blood pressure may be taking anticoagulants, which can reduce the body’s natural ability to stop bleeding. That’s why it’s very important for patients who are undergoing the dental implant procedure to let their dentist know what medications they’re taking.

Bleeding Tendencies

People with hypertension or haemophilia are susceptible to bleeding, so any invasive procedure could be potentially fatal. In these cases, special arrangements must be made for the procedure to be performed in a facility where emergency treatments are readily available.

The amount of time required for an implant to become fully integrated into the bone is a hotly debated topic. As a result, there’s a lot of variation in the amount of time that practitioners set aside for the implant to heal before placing a restoration on it.

In general, practitioners allow 2–6 months for healing, but some studies show that early placement of a crown on an implant may not increase the risk of complications. Here at LA Dental, we always choose to be cautious and give our patients plenty of time to heal.

Dental implants aren’t all the same!

For example, there are one-piece and two-piece implants, and different kinds of implant materials like metal or ceramic, but they all work to provide you with teeth that are both structurally supportive and functionally effective.

When you visit us for your consultation, we’ll talk to you about the options you have and explain why we’re recommending a certain type of implant structure or material for your procedure.

People often use the term “dental implant” to refer to the combined implant screw and dental crown (the part that looks like a tooth), but they’re technically two different pieces that can be made out of different materials.