I had most of my teeth pulled over two years ago, and have three left in the lower jaw. Is it possible to have full dental implants placed the same day that those are extracted?
- Mattie from Missouri
Mattie,
There is a possible problem with getting full dental implants placed the same day you have teeth extracted.
Some dentists will place dental implants into an extraction socket. The reasoning is that it’s easier and faster to place them when there is already a “hole” in the bone. The problem is that the tooth being taken out is often an infected tooth, and then that infection affects the dental implant and creates a risk of failure. Even placing implants in other places in your jaw while there are infected teeth nearby can increase the risk. In most cases, you would be better off having those last teeth extracted and letting all the infection clear up before having the implants placed.
Be very careful about choosing your dentist for dental implants. There is a wide range of differences between dentists in their success rates for implants, because there is a lot of pressure on them to trim costs, which means they try to cut corners. Cheap dental implants that don’t hold up over time can end up being very expensive dental implants.
It is possible to get dental implant surgery done in such a way as to allow the teeth to be placed on the implants immediately. That is called the “teeth in an hour” technique, and we have done that procedure. But there are increased risks associated with immediate loading, and if your dentist doesn’t share those risks with you, I’d suggest getting a second opinion.