Dental Practice Newsletters...

Dental Practice Newsletters Dental implants are presented to patients as perfect or near perfect replacements for their missing teeth. Rarely could they be informed from the risks and counseled around the failure rates. The procedures may have serious consequences and isn't perfect. Implants can and do fail. Patients need to be thoroughly accustomed to the risks and realize that dental implants can fail. With the right planning, implant placement is quite predictable, safe and helps to create a functional and esthetic result for patients.

Dental Implants have come an extended since their inception in the 1950's. Dental implant technology is changing with an incredibly fast rate. As each new technologies are adapted, dental implant success usually improves. Occasionally a technology comes into the marketplace that is mostly great marketing and only doesn't not enhance the success or actually hinders it. Fortunately that doesn't happen very often. dentist newsletter service So what makes dental implants fail ? There are a number of factors that lead to an increased risk of dental implant failure. Unfortunately a number of the risks aren't avoidable which is why dental implants are about 90-95% successful based on various studies (the number is actually better 95%).

As with long bone fractures, despite the best approximation from the fracture and great immobility, some fractures simply aren't healed if the cast is slowly removed. Either a non-union occurs (meaning no healing ever really started) or a fibrous union occurs (where rather than bone between the two sides of the fracture you have scar tissue). With respect to the type and where the fracture is as well as the patient, non-unions and fibrous unions occur about 5% of the time. That is similar to the failure rate of dental implants.

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

However certain conditions that increase the chance 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 risk of implant failure. People with these disorders and/or on these medications should bring those to the attention of the implant surgeon so a treatment plan could be tailored to suit their needs and their medical conditions.

There are many factors that will lead to an increase in dental implant failure. Implants can fail in early stages in the healing phase or late. Early failures could be defined as whenever before osseointegration occurs (healing phase) or at that time the crown is affixed for the implant. Late failure is described as any time following the implant using the tooth is under function.