My dentist has placed many dental implants in the past, so I felt fairly confident having him do mine. When he first did the procedure, he felt like there was not enough bone support and closed me up without placing the implants. He told me I can still get them, but that I would need to get bone grafting done first. I decided to try that. He’d been learning the procedure, so I went ahead and let him do that too. After the time needed for healing, he went in to do the procedure yet again, but there still wasn’t enough bone structure. Now he is talking about me just getting a dental bridge. Is there no way I can get the implant?
Brooke
Dear Brooke,
I will credit your dentist with a couple of good things. First, he is trying to increase his skill set. Not many dentists bother to even try learning bone grafting. It is good to have a dentist who tries to keep up with the latest procedures and developments in their field. Another great thing is his integrity. Some dentists would have been too embarrassed to admit their procedure did not work. Instead, they would have placed the implant hoping for the best. A year or two down the line, you would have no idea why the implant failed.
To answer your question, you can still get a dental implant. You may have to go to another dentist to do it, but I don’t think your dentist will mind that. I understand he is learning and he likely knows he is too. If you want to, you can get the bone grafting done with someone more experienced then get the implant through your dentist. Or you can get both procedures done by someone else.
Given that you are three surgeries in and still no implants you may be in a hurry to get things done. In that case, to guarantee it goes well this time, I suggest you get an expert. I would look for someone who is an expert. You would be more than safe with someone who is a fellow with the International Congress of Oral Implantologists.
This blog is brought to you by Sugar Land Dentist Dr. Siny Thomas.