Our Tips to Taking Care of Tooth Implants After Surgery

Dental implants are essential and an effective solution for missing teeth, and considering you take it upon yourself to provide reasons to the best aftercare, the dental implants can last a lifetime. In that regard, it can replace a single tooth, a row of teeth, or even an entire set of upper and lower jaw teeth.

This is done as the implants replace the roots of the teeth as well as the crown, which aims to prolong the life of any remaining natural teeth surrounding it as well as to reinforce support to the jaw.

After the procedure, it can take as little as six weeks to heal or as long as nine months, depending on what you do to maintain your aftercare as you’re healing. On that note, if you’re hoping to speed up the process of healing, here are some tips you can abide by to maintain a healthy and brand new set of teeth without a hitch.

How to Clean Dental Implants at Home

The purpose of dental implants is to blend with your natural teeth and support the jaw beneath it, so in that way, cleaning implants is similar to cleaning your natural teeth. This includes brushing, flossing, and using non-alcoholic mouthwash every morning and evening.

However, dental implants are more sensitive to bacteria left by unflossed food particles, which can lead to the formation of plaque and eventual jumpstart a new cycle of infection. Fortunately, you can avoid that with these cleaning tools below:

Tip #1: Interproximal Brushes

When caring for dental implants, the most important factor is to brush it with a soft-bristled toothbrush as it should reach the crevices of your implant without causing any harsh irritation. The type of toothbrush, on the other hand, doesn’t play a hand at its effects so any type of toothbrush can be used - from sonic, electric, or simply going old-school with the crowd-favorite, manual toothbrushes.

Tip #2: Floss

There is a myriad of different types of floss in the market, and it can be daunting to choose the right one that would suit your dental implants. In that regard, unwaxed tape or implant-specific floss is recommended by dentists as it is designed to protect the surrounding tissue of dental implants.

However, there are also multiple kinds of prostheses like bar-retained most of which are suitable for floss threader or a specialized floss that has a built-in threader. Nonetheless, it’s better to check with your dentist about which floss is the most appropriate for your specific implant and needs.

Tip #3: Water Flossers

Widely known as oral irrigators, this essentially a water flosser with a nonmetal tip that helps reduce the formation of plaque as well as ease inflammation using a non-alcoholic, antimicrobial rinse. This is also best used to clean hard-to-reach emergence profiles around the implants. If you notice inflammation, simply add a diluted non-alcoholic antimicrobial rinse to help ease the inflammation.

Tip #4: Stimulators

Stimulators are used for full-fixed or supra-structure implants, as well as brar-retained implants. You can extend the lifespan of your denture and maintain its strength is by placing the tip of the rubber-tip stimulator to lay flat against the gum tissue, with pressure roll to massage and stimulate the tissue. This will improve your keratinized tissue and lead to a healthier per mucosal seal surrounding the implant.

If you’re looking for dental implants, get in touch with us today for a free consultation!