Can You Get Dental Implants With Bone Loss?

Dental implants in Oak Park are an excellent tooth replacement option for patients dealing with missing teeth. They provide natural results and support overall oral health.

If you’ve been looking into dental implants, you've probably learned that not everyone is a good candidate for them. Patients dealing with bone loss might not be able to support this artificial tooth.

Don’t fret yet because you may still be able to get dental implants despite suffering bone loss. Keep reading to find out how.

Why Does Bone Loss Prevent You from Getting Implants?

Dental implants have three components:

  • Metal post
  • Abutment
  • Dental crown

The metal post is the element that gets inserted into the bone and acts like the artificial tooth’s root. But for the process to be successful, you need healthy bones and enough mass for the implant to be fully inserted.

Patients who’ve been dealing with missing teeth for a long time likely don’t have that. When a tooth is missing, that section of the jaw bone is no longer stimulated during chewing, which means blood flow to it is affected.

As blood carries essential nutrients to the bone, a missing tooth means the jaw bone starts to shrink.

What Can Patients with Bone Loss Do?

There are two potential solutions for patients dealing with bone loss. Before you can get implant surgery, you may first need to have another procedure designed to restore or reveal more jaw bone:

Sinus Lift

A sinus lift is a procedure where the sinuses are slightly raised to reveal more bone mass. This is an option when patients need a dental implant on their upper jaw.

As the sinuses are lifted, the surgeon may uncover enough bone mass to support an implant.

Bone Graft

A bone graft involves taking a piece of healthy bone, usually from another part of the jaw, and surgically attaching it to the area that’s been affected by missing teeth.

Then, the jaw will attach to the healthy bone, and the mass can be restored.

Do These Procedures Affect the Implant Process?

Both procedures are designed to help you become a good candidate for dental implants. However, if you require either procedure, your dental implant treatment timeline will be significantly delayed.

Both a sinus lift and a bone graft procedure will require a 6-month healing period, but it does depend on how fast your body can heal. In either case, you won’t be able to get the metal post inserted until after you’ve fully healed.

Find Out If You’re a Good Candidate for Implants

If you want to know if dental implants are the right solution for you, Dr. Brandon Murphy can see you for a consultation.

Schedule an appointment at Murphy Dental Group, PLLC online and find out the best dental treatment to restore the health and look of your smile!

For more information, call us at (708) 524-0330.