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Do dental implants require special care?
Dental implants are an innovative treatment that provides patients with stable, long-term tooth replacement, but the success of the implant is ultimately determined by how long it lasts, and taking proper care of a dental implant will ensure a long lifespan. When it comes to dental implants, special care is required in order to ensure its longevity. Below are some tips on how to care for your dental implants.
Natural teeth require conscientious at home care and regular dental cleanings and dental implants are no different.
Brushing and Flossing
Brushing twice a day, or ideally after every meal, flossing daily and using mouth wash daily will ensure your teeth are clean and plaque-free. One of the main causes of implant failure is infection. By keeping your implant clean, you’ll drastically reduce the chances of infection, therefore elongating implant life.
Immediately following your implant procedure, your dentist will give you a regimen to follow in terms of brushing and flossing until your implants have healed properly. Some patients may require a brush with softer bristles and a gentler mouth rinse during the healing period.
If you are undergoing dental implantation for an entire arch or an entire set of dentures, a special brush may be required to clean the area between the dentures and the implants.
Regular Dental Visits
After your implant is placed, depending on individual factors, your dentist may require you to return for a series of follow up treatments in order to ensure proper healing of your implant. Beyond that, scheduling dental visits twice a year will allow your dentist to monitor the progress of your implant, and treat any abnormalities that may arise (sometimes dentists recommend coming in every three months instead of every six months, but this will be based on individual factors).
These visits will also give your dentist the opportunity to keep other oral health problems at bay. Cavities, infections, damage decay, even to surrounding teeth, can have an adverse affect on dental implants.
It is easy to forget about the dentist—about visiting for those twice yearly teeth cleanings, but these visits are paramount to increasing the lifespan of your dental implant.