I was very excited to get my dental implants. However, there are six of them and two of them have fallen out in the first three days. I’ve paid half the fee already and I am a tad worried the others will fall out too. Is this a common situation? Can they be put back in?
Miranda
Dear Miranda,
I am sorry to hear this is happening to you. When dental implants are done by an experienced and trained dentist, the success rate is about 95% and this is for years. In just three days, your dentist has only a 66% success rate. However, as quickly as they’ve fallen out, I’m concerned that the others are going to as well. To answer one of your questions, No, this is not a common situation and should not be happening. The first thing I want you to do is to seek a second opinion from a dentist who is fully trained in dental implants. Look for someone with post-doctoral training. Have them look at your implants and tell you why they failed. This will give you some idea of what to expect with the remainder.
Causes of Dental Implant Failure
Here are some possibilities for your dental implant failure.
- Development of infection. This will often happen as a result of implant fixtures that do not fit properly. However, you didn’t mention anything about pain or a fever. Infection is normally accompanied by one or both of these.
- Inadequate bone support. If this was the case, your dentist should have caught it before even beginning the surgery. The diagnostic stage should have included quite a few x-rays and hopefully even a CT-scan.
- The use of substandard implant fixtures. Some dentists, in an effort to increase profits, will purchase cheaper fixtures from overseas.
- Premature loading of the dental crown on the fixtures. There needs to be time for the bone to integrate with implants before adding any real weight and stress to it.
- Incorrect placement of the implant on the part of the dentist or oral surgeon.
Once you know why the implants failed, it will give you a better idea of how to move forward. Dental implant failure does not necessarily mean you can’t have implants. Though, doing it again will require an extra procedure. You’ll have to build back up the bone that was lost. This can be done with a bone grafting procedure. If you do decide to try again, and I always recommend dental implants if you’re able, then I highly recommend you go with a different dentist.
This blog is brought to you by Atlanta Periodontist Dr. David Pumphrey.
