Austin Dental Implants

Dr. Cynthia L. Graves is a dentist and has answered some common questions bizymoms visitors have about Dental Implants.


Q. What are dental implants?

A. Implants:  One of the great patient advancements in dentistry, a titanium cylinder can be placed into the jawbone, preventing loss of the bone, and drift of adjacent teeth. A cosmetic crown can then be built to restore normal function and appearance.  This procedure is done in conjunction with an Oral or Periodontal surgeon who does the surgical placement of the implant body.  The procedure is very non-traumatic and most patients are amazed at the ease of the procedure. Implants can replace a single tooth, multiple teeth (in an implant supported bridge) or provide attachments to help keep a removable denture in place. 

Q. What are the benefits of dental implants?

A. Implants are the most sigificant advance in dentistry during my career as a dentist.  When a tooth is lost, the body has no reason to keep putting resources into maintaing the bone that once supported that tooth. So the bone dissolves slowly over time.  Placing an implant stops the bone loss and helps restore function to your bite.  Implants keep the mouth functioning as if the tooth were not lost plus it keeps the contours of the face from collapsing and giving you that "old" look. 

Q. How long does an implant last?

A. Once the implant is placed and the bone heals around it, an implant should last a lifetime.  There are situations where the bone around an implant can be lost--causing the implant to fail-- but that’s not typical.  The restoration on the implant should last as long.  Sometimes the porcelain on an implant crown may fail, or the attachment (abutment) that holds the implant into the bone can come loose to break.  Both those are rare.  Even still, we make our implant borne restorations in a way that allows us to access the attachment (the screw) so changes can be made to keep that implant working properly.

Q. What are implants made of?

A. The implant itself is the threaded cylinder placed in the bone to support the abutment head (screw) that is placed into the implant.  This is then restored with a crown built on a material that is compatible with the implant material. Implants and abutment screws are made of Titanium alloys--an expensive but very durable and long lasting material. Crowns are made of the same materials as crowns we place on regular teeth. 

Q. Who is a candidate for implants?

A. Anyone with a missing tooth or teeth. There must be enough thickness and depth of solid bone  to support the implant so the surgeon placing the implant must evaluate each case.  In some cases, artificial bone can be placed to provide more support.  In upper implants the sinuses sometimes drop down so low that the bone space is limited.  In this situation, a sinus "lift" may be performed to move the sinus out of the way. That is an additional surgical step taken at the time the implant is placed.

Q. How are dental implants placed?

A. Let’s use the wall anchor analogy.  A pilot hole is tapped into the bone much like opening a hole in the wall in which a threaded receptacle is placed to receive an anchor screw.  When a single rooted tooth is being replaced by implant, the implant may be placed the same day that the tooth is removed.  For molars, the bone must heal before the implant is placed.  On front teeth, some cases may receive a temporary crown on the day of surgery.  This is not "loaded" with pressure (it doesn’t hit the other teeth, it’s just for looks) until the bone heals.  On other implants, a healing cuff is placed so the implant looks like a tiny speed bump sticking out of the gums.  That will heal for 3-6 months depending on the patient’s health, healing capacity and bone quality.  The surgeon decides when the implant is ready to be restored. 

Q. How long does it take?

A. The surgery takes an hour or so.  The actual placement of the implant is quite straightforward, but  we choose to send our patients to a surgeon who is specialized in the surgical placement of implants.  Healing for the implant can take 3-6 months.  Some front teeth can have a temporary crown placed on them immediately.  But care is taken so there are no bite forces placed on the implant while the bone heals and the implant is firmly secured in the bone. At this time, we do not restore implants to full function until the body has had ample time to build good solid bone around the implant.  Maybe in a few years, we may see enough evidence that immediate loading of implants provides predictable, long term, stable restorations.  For  now, I prefer that my patients invest a little more time in the actual healing(bone intergration) of their implant rather than rush the process and end up with a less than desirable outcome. 

Q. How can we contact Dr. Graves if we have further questions?

A. email cgravesdds@aol.com / Cell: 217-5573