I’ve had two teeth pulled in back lower right side of mouth. Dentist wants to put in two implants. Can’t do bridges because it’s the last two teeth, so no tooth to connect to. His logic is that I’m “wasting” the back two upper right teeth because they have spaces below them, and I’m putting undo wear on the molar in front of it, because it’s stuck doing all of the chewing; also the lower teeth in front of the space may weaken/move out into the space.
So, who out there has had dental implants? Was the experience good? Painful? Worth it? Also, if there are any dentists out there who can chime in on whether they’re really needed for a situation like this, or is my dentist overhyping/selling?
These things are expensive, and painful from what I hear, and I’ve had enough dental pain/issues for a lifetime. I’m 54 and would really rather not do this, but should I?
I have 5, done about 10 years ago. Expensive? Yeah, they were. Painful? Not particularly, for me the session itself was really just like a really long session of cavity filling. Post-care was a little more than that, I’m pretty sure I got a vicoden prescription, but I didn’t need it.
No problems since then, it’s just a bunch of crowns.
If you can afford the implants then get them. Without them you’ll lose bone over time and if you have more problems with molars you still won’t have anything to attach a bridge to without them.
Do you need two implants? I ask because I had one back molar pulled about six years ago and both my dentist and the oral surgeon who pulled it recommended just letting the gap sit there. So I’m guessing that it’s the two-molar gap that makes it a problem.
Although my molar was an upper one. I don’t know if that changes the outlook.
I have one, a back molar. The dentist explained that if the mating tooth doesn’t have anything to press against, it will atrophy and die, too. I got the implant, it took three visits over several months and cost several grand, but I think it was worth it in the end.
I have two implants replacing the back two molars on the right side. I had wondered if they could put both crowns on one post but the dentist said it needed two separate ones. I have been going to him for almost 20 years and trust him so I generally take his advice (except wearing my nightguard, my bad). I don’t recall any significant pain. I know I have at least a couple more in my future and will get them done when the time comes. I think that people who are able to afford it are very fortunate to be able to get this done.
I had an implant in the upper front done 17 years ago and it’s been great. Healing up took a little time, but it wasn’t bad after the first few days. It really acts like a natural tooth - I regularly eat corn on the cob, apples, and steak with absolutely no problem.
I am missing quite a few adult teeth (I still have 6 baby teeth hanging on) and I will absolutely get them replaced with implants after they fall out.
Dentist here. There are always options. If time and money aren’t a problem two implants is the best way to go. For about half the money a single implant replacing the first molar is also an option. One molar is better than none. Another possibility depending on things such as amount of bone and space available and condition of the second premolar , it might be possible to put the implant in the second molar position and use it as the abutment for a three unit fixed bridge to the second premolar there by replacing both missing molars with one implant. There is also the option of a removable appliance. While not as solid as implants they are very serviceable and much cheaper than implants. The last option is of course to do nothing. Not a great option but plenty of people do it. It will make for more wear and tear on the remaining teeth but how much it will really affect them is hard to say.
Implants really shouldn’t be painful but they are time consuming and expensive.
Implant, lower rear-most molar. The upper tooth started shifting down and my dentist said implant or remove the upper tooth as well.
I got the implant but I’m sorry I waited. Supposedly the upper tooth shifting down is not all that common, but it happens. Because of that they had to reshape the upper tooth as well.
I will probably do it again, on the other side, when the time comes. Hope I don’t have to do it again soon, but I expect it to be easier, since I hope they can do the pulling and implanting at the same time.
From what I read (b/c the greedy oral surgeon who did mine tried to talk me into it after I was under the laughing gas) implanting at the same time as extraction increases the risk of infection, especially if a bone graft’s necessary.
I have one implant. I can’t tell you if you need them or not, but I can say that in terms of pain and surgical trauma, if you’ve already had the old ones pulled, you’ve done the hard part.
(In my case, I’m pretty sure the bone dust zombie powder was added at the time of the pulling.)
I’m happy to hear these positive reports. I had a nasty fall a few weeks ago and broke off one of my front teeth (pretty much right at the bone). I’m having the implant done this friday. In my case they are doing most of it in one go: extracting the root, placing the titanium implant and placing a temporary crown (which is am not allowed to do anything with). It will be half a year until I get the real crown.
Hope all goes well. I only got regular paracetamol prescribed for the pain, in addition to anti bacterial rinsing for a few weeks and a course of antibiotics.
Don’t assume implants are always permanent. I had a full set of upper implants that all failed… an infection that spread until they were all infected. No symptoms until they all became loose, and had to be removed at further expense. Now I have a full upper denture.
polar bear, the pain won’t be bad enough for you to need much more than the paracetamol afterward. Worst part of the recovery for me was finding food that wouldn’t interfere w/ my stitches; I also lost a front tooth. I ate lots of pudding, apple sauce, crushed pineapple & peanut butter on a spoon. They also recommend ground meats.
Thank you all for responding to my question. I have always loved the Dope but I don’t ask a lot of questions; it’s great to get so many responses. Almost unanimously, you are supporting the decision to get the implants, which I will most likely do, and now I feel much more comfortable doing so. My fear has been that dentists push implants because they can make so much money, so it’s interesting that the one dentist (as far as I know)–rsat3acr–who contributed to this thread was actually a little less enthusiastic in support of getting implants. And I will ask my dentist whether the “one implant with a bridge” option may work for me.
