- Consultation
If you've become victim to needing to replace a natural tooth, the first thing we’ll need to do is an exam to determine if a dental implant is a viable solution.
Our Mesa, AZ dentist will examine your teeth and gums to check the status of your oral health. A CT scan X-ray will confirm if there’s enough room and bone for the implant, and make sure there are no nerves or other anatomy to work around.
If it's determined that you do in fact qualify for this procedure, we may have to order your implant or get a custom stent made to help ensure precise placement.
- Extraction/Bone graft
If your tooth is already missing, then you’ve lucked out and can likely skip this step. But if your tooth still needs to be removed then we may have to extract it first.
In some cases, we can take out the tooth and place the implant right away. Usually, this is with single-rooted teeth like the ones in the front and some premolars.
For a tooth that has multiple roots like a molar, or an area with a significant amount of infection, an extraction will be needed prior to placing the implant. Then time will be given for you to re-coop. Our Mesa, AZ implant dentist may choose to place bone grafting material within the sockets to help ensure more predictable results.
- Extraction Healing Time
Once the extraction and/or grafting is done your body will need time to heal. During the next 2-3 month period, the bone grafting material will integrate with your body's natural bone and produce a solid foundation for your new implant. You may periodically return to our dentist in Mesa for a quick visit to check the status of the bone via a digital x-ray.
- Placing Your Implant
When the big day comes, you’ll need to bring a driver with you and plan to be with us for a couple of hours. In the skilled hands of Dr. Vihn Huyn, you’ll undergo sedation and before you know it your implant will be set.
- Implant Integration Period
Though the dental implant has been placed within the bone, it will need time to integrate with its new surroundings before attaching a restorative crown (tooth) to it. Doing so prematurely may result in trauma to the area, loosening of the implant and other complications.
Think of it like a post in the ground, surrounded by cement. If you put force on that post and wiggle it around before the concrete is completely set, the post will always be loose and not sturdy enough to last.
As with the first integration period you’ll likely return every few weeks for us to x-ray the area and ensure that everything is healing properly. Once it’s determined that the implant is sturdy enough to withstand a crown, we will proceed to the final step.
- Scan and Crown Placement
A digital scan of your teeth will help us design and fabricate your custom crown. This procedure is simple and doesn’t require sedation, or even anesthesia. When you leave our office, you’ll have your new tooth in place and you’ll ready to take on the world!
