Dental implants. Are they any good? Complications?

[Chuckiechan]

My dentist is suggesting one for a back tooth where I have a bridge attached.

We're talking about 3 grand here. A specialist does the bottom, and the dentist does the top. Insurance excludes implants.

Do you feel it was worth it, or is he just trying to make his boat payment?

[RedFury]

it's either live with the bridge or have an implant put in, unless you want a partial denture with one tooth stuck on it, and those aren't cheap either.

My wife has to have a full set of dentures and the entire thing is going to be around 8 grand ( extractions and dentures ).

[mbritton2]

you can get the implants for 10 and the are great I know someone with then and all that I can say is WOW

[Knothead]

What I've seen of dental implants, looks like it depends entirely on the person getting 'em.

I had a client, in his late 40's, (nonsmoker) missing some teeth, got them, and man, they are GREAT! You can't tell the diff, and he says he can't either.

A good friend, mid-40's, smoker, (and who, for a couple of years did cocaine, and did that stupid "gum rubbing thing") did so much damage to his gums, that to get the implants, they had to cut away a lot of the bone and gums....now he has a great smile, but if you pull up the upper lip, or pull down the lower, you'll see a big gap where the plastic gums end, and the real gums begin.

Looks like "teeth on stilts". He likes to show this to young people who are starting to smoke, (or worse, fool around with cocaine.)

Figures that at least he can serve as a bad example!


boy, this is the week for Don't Smoke, huh?

[daveleau]

My wife is in the process of having this done.

Upside of this procedure:
It doesn't destroy 2 teeth in the procedure (bridges destroy 2 teeth by filing them down and using them as anchors for the bridge)
It is more permanent than a bridge (bridges break and leave you with the need to fix 3 teeth/ more expense and pain later)
There is no worry with an implant. You can eat that frozen snickers bar without worrying about breaking your bridgework.

Downside of this procedure:
Even though this procedure is 15 years old, insurance still does not cover it

We are paying about $2k for this procedure. She had her old tooth extracted and is now wearing a retainer that has a partial on it. This is normal while the affected area heals and while they make the implant. The implant is (this sounds bad but I can't think of any other way to put it) screwed into the bone that supports teeth normally. It is much more long-lasting than any other procedure. I wouldn't suggest the partial/ retainer for any length of time because it is a pain because you can't really eat with it in and any prolonged period without the partial in place causes the teeth to shift, causing a multitude of other problems.

I've been thinking about going with implants when I get rich and famous. I met one guy though who had his top front four done and he says they still hurt sometimes. I guess it might be worth some occasional ibuprofin to be able to smile and eat like a normal person though.

[Theophylact]

As I've said elsewhere, I've got eleven of them.

There were complications with one; it didn't "integrate" and came out when force was applied during installation of the abutment. That required time for recovery (three months or more) and a second one was installed.

A second set of three required a bone graft to provide enough foundation for the implants.

A third one became infected when implanted; it had to be removed, and a four-month healing period was needed before the second installation could be done.

Right now, though, all of them are functioning, and it's pretty much as though I had my original set of choppers.

If it weren't for the time-consuming nature of the process (and the cost!) I'd recommend it over dentures wherever possible.

[Chuckiechan]

I'm kicking around the idea of one. I think he said it would be done in such a way that I wouldn't need the bridge at all, which I think it is about an ounce of gold at ~ $390 an ounce...

Not time yet, but thanks for the input...

[jadinolf]

Originally posted by Chuckiechan
My dentist is suggesting one for a back tooth where I have a bridge attached.

We're talking about 3 grand here. A specialist does the bottom, and the dentist does the top. Insurance excludes implants.

Do you feel it was worth it, or is he just trying to make his boat payment?

If you have the money, go for it.

I had a similar problem but I was quoted $5350 and had to pass.

They came up with an alternate solution which, of course, was not as good but much less expensive.

[Omardeth]

my step father had a full set done , uppers and bottoms , in the 80's . when he passed away about 2 years ago they looked just as new as the day he had it done . he never seemed to have any problems with them .