Are your dental implants causing problems? Here are 5 common complications you should be aware of as well as tips on what to do if they do occur.

Dental implants improve your smile, your self-esteem, and your overall dental health. There are, however, a few potential dental implant problems you should be aware of.

In this guide, we're going to explain 5 common complications of getting dental implants. We'll also tell you what risk factors cause these complications so you can prevent them.

Lastly, we'll describe various dental implant infection signs and what to do if you do experience any of these problems. Discover everything you've wanted to know about dental implants problems from this comprehensive guide.

1. Bodily Rejection of the Implants

Sometimes the performing dentist is unaware that the patient is allergic to the material that the implant is made out of. Even the patient might not know of the allergy until their body has a reaction to it.

If it's specifically an allergy to the tooth component, the false tooth can simply be replaced. But if the body is reacting to the implant post installed in the jawbone, the whole implant will have to be removed.

Fortunately, there are different options of implant materials if an allergic reaction is, in fact, the problem. But, unfortunately, this reaction is not always an allergic one.

Some bodies are just overly-sensitive to any foreign material that enters them. In this case, dental implants simply aren't an option.

2. Micro-Movements of Your Implants

The implant post has to fuse with the jawbone to become permanent. This process is called osseointegration.

Sometimes, before the implant post is permanently set, it can move around slightly like a loose tooth. If this happens too much, the post won't fuse to the jawbone and will fall out.

This can happen when the dentist immediately attaches the tooth replacement to the post before the post has a chance to integrate with the bone. It also happens often when you chew too many hard foods before osseointegration takes place.

3. Low Bone Density

Another factor that prevents osseointegration is low bone density. Often this is due to jawbone erosion as a result of missing teeth. In this case, a bone graft can be applied to the jaw before the implant is installed.

In other instances, the patient has a medical condition, like osteoporosis, that lowers their bone density. In these cases, dental implant surgery should not be performed or the implant will most likely fail.

4. Problems With Healing

There are certain lifestyles and some medical conditions that reduce the patient's ability to heal. These include:

Diabetes
Autoimmune diseases
Cancer
Arthritis
Smoking
Heavy drinking

Also, poor dental hygiene before or after the surgery negatively impacts your oral health. This hinders the healing of the implant area.

Eating the wrong foods can also prevent proper healing. Be sure to follow your dentist's instructions about post-surgery diet and implant care.

5. Infection of Dental Implants

With any surgery, there's always a risk of infection. While surgeons try their best to keep everything sanitary, bacteria thrive in and on the human body regardless. There's no way to eliminate them completely.

This is an even greater risk with oral surgeries. Your mouth contains more than 700 types of bacteria.

The dentist must be extremely careful to keep the implant area from becoming infected. And, even then, infection is always a possibility. For this reason, the dentist may prescribe you some antibiotic medication after the procedure, just to be safe.

Also, if you already had poor dental hygiene or gum disease before the surgery, your chance of infection is higher. It may also happen afterward if you're not careful to follow the dentists post-surgery instructions.

Dental Implant Infection Signs

Next, if you already have one or more dental implants, it's important to know the signs of a possible implant infection. Here are a few such signs.

Your implant feels loosely attached
There's blood and/or pus near the implant
Gum recession
Your gums are red or swollen
You're having difficulty chewing
Frequent fever
Pain/discomfort
A lasting bad taste in the mouth/bad breath

Don't wait to see a dentist about these problems. If you do, the infection will quickly worsen and your implant will most likely fail.

If your current dentist is unavailable, see a different dentist. Or, try the emergency room or urgent care.

What to Do When You Experience Dental Implant Problems

As with a dental implant infection, you need to see your dentist immediately about any of the problems on this list. If you don't receive dental care for these issues promptly, they will cause your implant to come loose. When that happens, you may be waiting a whole year for the implant site to heal up so a replacement can be installed.

In any case, when you experience implant failure, see the dentist who installed it as soon as you can. They should, and in most cases, will, give you a refund. Or, they may credit the amount you paid toward your next implant or a different procedure.

If they don't, you may have grounds to take legal action. But, before you rush into anything like that, get a second opinion from one or more additional dentists. If they believe the performing dentist botched the job, and the dentist still won't pay, seek legal help.

Choose Sewell Dental Designs for Problem-Free Dental Implants

The best thing to do about dental implant problems is to prevent them. And the best way to do that is by choosing Sewell Dental Designs for your dental implants. That's because, at Sewell, we make sure you are eligible before we perform the procedure and we do it right.

Want to avoid all the problems on this list? We can help. Contact us now to get started.

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