Dental Practice Newsletters...

Dental Practice Newsletters Dental implants are made available to patients as perfect or near perfect replacements for their missing teeth. Rarely are they informed from the risks and counseled on the failure rates. The procedures can have serious consequences and is not perfect. Implants can and do fail. Patients have to be thoroughly informed about the risks and realize that dental implants can fail. With correct planning, implant placement is quite predictable, safe and fosters a functional and esthetic result for patients.

Dental Implants have come a lengthy since their inception within the 1950's. Dental implant technology is changing at an incredibly fast rate. As each new technologies are adapted, dental implant success usually improves. Occasionally a technology comes into the marketplace that's mostly great marketing and either doesn't not improve the success or actually hinders it. Fortunately which doesn't happen often. dentist newsletter service So what makes tooth implants fail ? There are a variety of factors that cause an increased likelihood of dental implant failure. Unfortunately a few of the risks aren't avoidable and that's why tooth implants are about 90-95% successful based on various studies (the amount is actually closer to 95%). As with long bone fractures, even with the best approximation of the fracture and great immobility, some fractures simply aren't healed once the cast is taken away. Either a non-union occurs (meaning no healing ever really started) or even a fibrous union occurs (where instead of bone backward and forward sides of the fracture you have scar tissue). Based on the type where the fracture is and also the patient, non-unions and fibrous unions occur about 5% of times. That is similar to the failure rate of tooth implants.

The same principles of healing from your fracture are congruent with the healing of your implant.

You will need good approximation with the bone towards the implant surface along with a period of immobility to possess a successful osseointegration from the implant. Osseointegration means the bone accepted the implant and incorporates itself round the implant. As you have seen, the failure rate of implants is similar to the rate of fractures not healing properly. You can get failure with the bone to osseointegrate (similar to non-unions) and as opposed to bone around an implant you have a fibrous encapsulation (similar to the fibrous union in bone fractures).

However certain issues that increase the risk of implant failure are poorly controlled diabetes, some bone metabolic and congenital disorders, certain medications like glucocorticoids (prednisone), immunosupressants and bisphosphonate medications (Zometa, Fosamax, Actonel, Boniva, etc.)

Additionally, smoking and poor hygienic habits can cause an increased chance of implant failure.

Individuals with these disorders and/or on these medications should bring those to the attention of the implant surgeon so a therapy plan may be tailored to fit their needs and their medical conditions.

There are more factors that will lead to an increase in dental implant failure. Implants can fail in the beginning in the healing phase or late. Early failures will be defined as at any time before osseointegration occurs (healing phase) or at that time the crown is affixed towards the implant.

Late failure is understood to be any time after the implant with all the tooth is under function.