If you’re missing teeth and have considered a dental implant you’ve probably done some reading on the qualifications for the procedure as well. Dental implants are a truly amazing solution for people suffering from tooth loss and it would be a shame to get your hopes up to find you aren’t eligible!
At New Albany Implants we can determine your eligibility almost immediately by using our Galileos 3D CAT scanning machine! By creating a detailed 3D model of your mouth and facial structure to rule out common physical causes of implant disqualification.
Causes Of Implant Disqualification
There are a lot of reasons why dental implants may not be your best treatment choice – hopefully you don’t have any of these conditions!
Bone Loss
When you lose teeth you also lose bone mass in your jaws. Your bones and teeth have a close relationship with each other and without the tooth present the bone starts to shrink! This can lead to more and more lost teeth as bone loss continues to spread. This domino effect of tooth loss can leave in you in bad shape quickly!
Bone loss can also be a cause of tooth loss! The advanced stages of gum disease can leave you with serious bone deterioration that leads to that same domino effect!
We’ll take the time to perform a full exam and use our digital modeling techniques to rule out bone loss, and even with it you can still get implants in some cases!
Smoking
While smoking may not completely disqualify you from getting a dental implant is can have a serious effect on your success before and after the procedure! Smoking impairs the ability of your gums and bone to heal and also changes the bacteria balance in your mouth, leaving you in danger for bacterial infection during healing.
Smoking also greatly increases your chances for peri-implant disease, a condition much like gum disease that can lead to implant loss!
Chemotherapy
If you’ve received radiation treatment for cancer in the past you may have a harder time getting dental implants. Your implants need to bond to bone in order to work properly and chemotherapy can affect your body’s ability to bond with the implant! It also has an effect on your body’s ability to heal, potentially complicating the implant process.
Even if you’ve had chemotherapy within the past few years it’s a good idea to discuss dental implants with your doctor before planning on treatment.
Heart Disease
If you suffer from cardiovascular conditions and are taking medications such as warfarin or other blood thinning drugs you may have healing complications from implant surgery. Much like with past chemotherapy it’s important that you check with your doctor before considering dental implants.
Don’t Give Up Hope Yet!
None of these conditions completely eliminates you from getting a dental implant! They might pose problems but many of them can be overcome with good planning and discussion between our New Albany dental team and your primary care provider. If you have any of these conditions you should still come and see us!
Let us help determine which treatment option is best for you – call New Albany Implants today at (812) 945-7645! You can also request an appointment by filling out our online form. We look forward to seeing you soon!