Dental implants are one of the best ways to restore both the look and function of your smile if you’re dealing with missing teeth.
If you’ll soon get a dental implant at Harrison Family Dentists or any other practice in the Saratoga Springs area, you might wonder what to expect during the healing phase.
After your surgery, you’ll need to wait an average of six months before the procedure is completed.
Here are five things you can experience during this healing stage:
The dental implant surgery will be performed under local anesthesia, so your mouth will be numb when you leave your appointment.
But, once the anesthetic wears off, it’s normal to feel a bit of discomfort, which may last for a few days or up to a week. As the metal post of the implant is inserted into the jawbone, the site can feel tender and even present some swelling.
You can use over-the-counter pain medication like Ibuprofen to control these symptoms. Avoid medications like aspirin, which can thin the blood and lead to unnecessary bleeding.
You can also notice your saliva has a pinkish hue or has a metallic taste in your mouth. Some patients can even see traces of blood around their implant site.
This is completely normal and usually only lasts for 2–3 days. When the gums heal, you should not notice any more bleeding. But reach out to your dentist right away if bleeding persists after a week or if it’s intensifying.
Apart from chewing on the other side of your mouth to avoid applying pressure to the implant site, you will also need to slightly adjust your diet.
In the first few days, you should eat softer foods that don’t require a lot of chewing, like purees or yogurt. After 3 days or so, you can slowly add harder foods back into your diet.
Dental implant surgery is a straightforward procedure, but it’s still considered major surgery. Right after, you should head home to rest and avoid going to the gym or exerting yourself physically for at least four days.
Intense physical activity increases your blood pressure and can lead to bleeding.
Most of these symptoms won’t last for more than 1-2 weeks. After that, you can mostly resume your normal activities and diet.
Then, you’ll enter the "quiet" healing stage, osseointegration. It’s a slow process where the bone fuses to the metal post, and you’ll only be able to get the crown attached after this stage is complete.
Find out if this surgery is right for you by seeing Dr. Alexandra Porcu for a dental implant consultation.
Schedule a visit to Harrison Family Dentists online or call us at (518) 584-6240 for a short chat!
