My oral surgeon says he hasn’t seen a case like mine before, where the implant (screw in the jawbone) feels tight and seems to be integrated but there is extreme pain when he does the “torque test.” Has anybody else had this happen?
I retained a baby tooth into adulthood that finally had to come out. To replace it, the doc put an implant (titanium screw) into the bone, where it was left to bond with the bone over the next seven months. Before a new tooth is created to attach to the screw, he needed to test to be sure the implant “took.” It seemed bonded and tight and ready to go to him. So he did a torque test, which hurt like crazy. It felt like he was twisting out one of my teeth with no anaesthetic.
So, what to do? He thought the pain meant the implant had failed, so prepared to remove the screw. But when he began, it seemed good to him. So he left the screw in and we waited another month. The torque test still hurts.
He hasn’t seen this before. Has anyone else had it happen? What did your dental surgeon do?
I had two implants done a few years back. I don’t recall getting a torque test done on either one of them. Maybe your dentist is putting too much pressure on the screw when he’s doing the torque part? How much torquing force does he think your teeth encounter on a regular chewing event? Maybe get a second opinion?
If the bone and screw have meshed to one unit he’s effectively twisting your tooth in it’s socket by twisting the screw, and this is not supposed to hurt? That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me unless I’m misunderstanding the procedure.
Ah, torquing is a normal test for implants. It sounds like you’re best bet is waiting and going back in a month or so - the pain on torquing indicates osseointegration is not yet complete.
The torque test is appropriate and warranted, to be sure the screw is integrated into the bone. There is a specific tool (like a wrench) they use for this and the torque is a specific pressure. It is not painful, once the bone has grown around the screw. Pain usually indicates that the bonding has not occurred. But in my case, the screw seems bonded to him, so the pain doesn’t make sense. I also have sinus pain problems with allergies (even when my nose isn’t congested) and I’m starting to wonder if this is related.
I keep thinking of the Ducati motorcycle I could be riding with the money I used for this nightmare.
I was thinking about an implant for a missing tooth. I’m not so sure now. I didn’t realize it took almost half a year. Maybe a bridge is a better option after all.
I suppose it may be specific to individual dentists how long they allow for implants to be completed, but mine assumes a full 12 months will be needed for all procedures to be done.
I had my tooth extracted in November - I was supposed to go for a dental CATscan in April (but postponed, and now will be postponing until after my relocation/finding another person to do it). They said I needed to wait at least 6 months for the bone graft to heal and bond to my tooth - we hadn’t yet begun to discuss the specific time frames for the rest of it, but I know it was going to be a while.
This, though slow, is the best long-term solution for me.
Is the tooth in question in the upper or lower jaw? If it’s in the upper, you might have an abcess at the root end, which can cause pain that feels like it’s in the sinus. I had this a few years back – one of my canines had an abcess right at the end of the root, eating away some of the bone. After a root canal, apicoectomy, and bone graft, the pain went away and the tooth was saved.