No - it can’t be attached because anything putting pressure on that post would risk dislodging it which is obviously a bad idea.
A friend who had an implant on a front tooth said she got a temporary “flipper” to cover the gap, but I don’t think that attached to the post, I think it attached to nearby teeth.
In my case, as the swelling in the gums receded, I could tell there was a hard bump just above the gumline (that was the cap for the post).
When I had the one done in two stages (tooth removed a few years before, post placed later), the oral surgeon actually covered the screw part with gum tissue. When that had healed and the post was solidly implanted, he used a local anesthetic to open up the gum and put a cap on the screw.
Then I had to go to my regular dentist to have the crown made.
My situation was a little different. I apparently had a tooth that didn’t come in at all when I was a little kid, meaning it was congenital and not a bad tooth. When I got braces in my mid-40’s, they noticed that and made it so the braces made a gap for an implant in that spot. After the braces were off, I went and had the implant done. From putting in the post to getting the crown I think it was about 4 weeks. I had to pay all of it out of pocket since it was congenital.
I hardly had any pain from the implant procedure and don’t really notice it’s there. Never had a problem with it.
Am looking forward to another 8 or 9 (If money comes through).
In my experience:
Root canal (if root is still alive)
Drill hole
Insert adhesive and post
Apply ‘spackle’ - a build-up of some sort of tooth-like material
Apply ‘temp’ crown - allows the tooth to be used
(steps 1-5 done in a single sitting)
After 3-4 months, the ‘temp’ crown is removed and the permanent is glued in place.
I have one tooth which had a very poor (small town midwest, no Insurance) cap installed 40-50 years ago (yes, I’m that old) - the entire tooth rotted below the crown, and what remained split fore and aft. DDS wanted to have Oral Surgeon removed the remainder and fill in the bone with bone chips. ($5K).
We have decided to drill a hole between the two halves, inject cement and post. From there, it will be a complex build-up (‘spackle’) and convention crown.
It should last 5-10 years. I may last 5-10 years, so it seems like a good shot.
My first posts were installed by a very high-end DDS (he lectures in US and Europe). My current, low-end (still uses emulsion X-rays) DDS is now comfty with the technology. Funny what 20 years does.
This doesn’t sound like a regular implant procedure - where the tooth has been removed entirely. In my case, I’d had root canals before on each tooth but they were an attempt to avoid extraction, not part of the implant procedure (both rc’s failed and the tooth had to be extracted).
Yours sounds more like a crown with buildup, which is what they’ve done on a couple of my teeth - though I don’t think they used any kind of post (though I could be wrong).
A “regular” implant should, in theory, last a lifetime, though the crown portion might need to be redone periodically.
You’ll need follow-ups after the implant is put in to make sure the implant area is healing, the implant isn’t moving, and that it is integrating with the bone. Any old dentist might do that for you, but if there are problems things may not work out too well. My recommendation is to be picky about who puts in an implant. You don’t want to end up with nerve pain or a misaligned implant, or anything else that might go wrong.
Now it’s been 15 years instead of 10. I’m still religiously flossing around the implant daily (twice daily when I remember), and the implant’s still doing fine.
I’ve had one implant done. It wasn’t significantly painful and it seems to be working without any noticeable issues. But… it sure looks domineering on the x-ray, like a large screw is embedded in my jaw “for good”, and I sometimes wonder if it could ever be removed if need be without destroying my jaw.
I had an implant at the beginning of the year and love it. I had broken the tooth maybe a year and a half previously, and had gotten more and more annoyed by the gap (it wasn’t visible unless I really opened my mouth wide, but food kept getting stuck in there). Because I was paying for my portion of the cost with my Flexible Spending Account, my dentist timed it for me (and billed separately) so that I had the post implanted in 2014 and then four months later the tooth finished in 2015. Or was it 2013-2014? Gosh, now I can’t remember! Whenever I had it done, I’m so happy with it I regret having had to wait. There was very little discomfort, the second portion of the procedure took a lot longer with baking and curing and color matching…I think I watched about four episodes of Flea Market Flip on the exam room tv. Within a week the tooth eased into a comfort zone and I no longer was aware of it.
Good luck, ThelmaLou!
Yikes, I was going to come in here and vent a little about the HELL I’m going through as I heal from the three I had put in last week. BUT, I think my experience might be contrary to most peoples’. Certainly to everyones’ here and to the few people I know IRL who’ve had them done. The worst part for me is not being able to eat anything remotely solid. I had luke warm pasta yesterday which I basically swallowed whole. Of course, I had my implants done on both sides of my mouth so there’s nowhere in my mouth that isn’t sutured up. Also, taking antibiotics on a virtually empty stomach several times a day is making me feel like shite. Okay, enough of my bitching (thanks for listening ). Anyway, Thelma, I’m sure yours will be just fine.
So sorry, Wookinpanub. Rats. Why did you have both sides of your mouth done at the same time?
I’m back home. The procedure went fine. This dentist is REALLY good. Easy-going but super professional. Retired Navy commander. Explains everything. I was in the chair for an hour and a half, but it didn’t seem that long at all. The old tooth came out easily, and he said that took half an hour off the procedure. Then he put the screw in-- didn’t feel a thing. Then he makes up a slurry of bone material and packs it around the screw, because it is smaller than than the tooth that came out-- kind of like filling around the roots of a tree when you plant it. He said eventually the body will use that material as “seed” and grow its own new bone–pretty cool, eh? Then he puts something like a fabric over it to protect the area and sutures it in. I have a piece of gauze in my mouth to hold in place over the area for the next couple of hours in case there’s still bleeding. Haven’t had one bit of pain. Of course, I took 800 mg of Ibuprofen this morning at 6 and another 800 mg about an hour ago.
I just ate some soup, applesauce, and V-8 juice, and had to replace the gauze, 'cause it got all gushy (TMI) I’ll go back in two weeks for a look-see. Not sure how long until he puts the cap on it.
Now going to have some ice cream.
I appreciate all the encouragement here, and again WPN-- dang! Having nowhere to chew at all is a major bummer. Are you sucking plenty of milkshakes?
Yay, ThelmaLou! Glad it went so smoovely and that you’re doing well. As I mentioned, I think my case is just a big ol’ cluster all the way around. Not sure why they did both sides at once. I would actually say that’s a good idea so as to get this part out of the way but it turned out the bone graft on one of them didn’t take so I have to go back and get that done in a few week My whole dental thing has been pretty extensive so I’m probably in a different (miserable) category. Anyway, continue to feel good and have some ice cream for me
Glad to hear the procedure went well ThelmaLou. The worst is behind you now.
I got my tooth extracted separate from the implant. I waited several years before getting the implant. Took me awhile to save enough money and find the right time. I didn’t realize they would do both procedures the same day.
I did have extra for you. I was a vanilla ice cream and orange sherbet swirl-- hope you liked it.
Possibly this is a relatively new thing? Some of the other posters had the procedures done eons apart, too.
Just got up from the best nap of my life. Nothing like being drugged to the eyeballs to really relax you.
Questions for other major-procedure dental patients:
As the dentist was beginning to get ready to commence to start the implant procedure, the assistant unfolded a giant drape that she started to put over me. The drape would have covered me from head to toe-- including my face :eek: – except for a hole cut in it to expose my mouth.
No. Freaking. Way.
Covering my FACE??? Are you NUTS?? I said no. Don’t cover my face with that. The dentist said okay-- don’t use it. I already had wraparound sunglasses to fully shield my eyes from the bright light and any splashing.
Were you fully covered (including your face) with this kind of drape during your procedure?
Did it bother you to have your face covered?
If it did bother you, did you feel you had the right to object and refuse it? (Some people don’t know they can tell doctors when they don’t like something.)
Frankly, I can’t imagine anyone being able to tolerate this.
I’m pretty sure they did not do that for mine - then again I was being sedated. I remember that my arm was fastened down for one of them (because of the IV). Certainly they did not use it before I went to the faraway place.
Now, when I’ve had a root canal, they use a dental dam which basically blocks the entire mouth with just a bit of a hole for the tooth. That feels pretty weird - but the times I’ve had it I’ve also had Good Drugz on board so hey, what the hell :D.
The fun part of the recovery process, after the first few days, is when the stitches start to dissolve. I can’t help but mess with them, and of course at some point they’re almost loose and quite literally hanging on by a thread, which is really annoying as hell. You can’t pull on the loose bit because it hurts and there’s this (probably ungrounded) fear that pulling it will make something fall out that shouldn’t fall out (picture pulling on yarn from a sweater and having the whole thing come apart).
Hopefully you only have one or two stitches. When I had mine last year, I had 4-5 stitches, since they did the extraction and implant at the same time.
Wookinpanub, sorry you are having such a wretched time. Smoothies can be a way to get something into your innards (no straws the first few days, or perhaps not at all).
Thanks for the well wishes, Mama Z. Now that Thelma has already been through it and there’s no danger of scaring her. . . WTF have they done to me???
I’m mostly kidding; I do trust my perio doc, it’s just that my experience doesn’t seem to match anyone’s here. Dissolvable stitches? Bwhaaaaa? I’ve got a mouth full of sutures that I have to go back and get removed. I guess I’m lucky in that I didn’t have anything over my face (as far as I know:p), but I did regain consciousness before they were finished:eek: Not like, early in the procedure, but maybe the last fifteen minutes or so. In my drug addled state I guess I thought it was normal; that they were almost done and it was just what happens sometimes(or something). I thought they knew I was awake: I *think *I cleared my throat, shifted in the chair, rubbed my feet together, etc. The doctor and assistants were horrified (well, not as horrified as I ) that I had awoken. They asked me why I didn’t let them know and I said I thought I was letting them know by moving around and stuff. It was surreal. Now I’m all freaked out about going back to get the last one done. I’m hoping that since they now know that I wasn’t under long enough they’ll make sure to dope me up reeeeeeal nice next time. Sorry to dominate the thread with my whining; thanks for listening.
). Anyway, Thelma, I’m sure yours will be just fine.
My whole dental thing has been pretty extensive so I’m probably in a different (miserable) category. Anyway, continue to feel good and have some ice cream for me 
I was a vanilla ice cream and orange sherbet swirl-- hope you liked it.