What to Expect - The Dentist

A Comprehensive Guide to What to Expect with Your Dental Implant Procedure

What you can expect in the dental implant process

Planning on Getting a New Smile?

Knowing what to expect with dental implants can help you better prepare for your consultation, surgery, and restorative phases. At The Dentist, Dr. Carlos Medina provides comprehensive implant services including guided placement, bone grafting, and peri-implantitis care all in one convenient location. The best way to know what to expect with dental implants is to plan a new patient exam and consultation with Dr. Medina. From here we’ll discuss if you’re a candidate for implants, how many implants you’ll need, the types of implant restorations available, etc. Since each case is unique, we’ll want to adjust the treatment plan to your unique anatomy, needs, and long-term smile goals.

The Planning Process

During your initial exam, we’ll take a series of x-rays and intraoral scans to evaluate your oral anatomy and determine where your dental implants should be placed. You’ll be given a written treatment plan outlining the appointments and procedures involved. Unless you need to have extractions, a bone graft, or sinus lift surgery, you’ll typically have one surgery date. In some cases, Dr. Medina can even complete these adjunctive services on the same day of your implant placement. Even if you’ve been told that dental implants weren’t an option, we provide alternative implant treatments like Zygoma dental implants, which can be extremely successful for people with extensive bone loss.

The Placement Date

Now is the time to have your implants placed, and when it comes to what to expect with dental implants, this is the part people are most curious about. The great thing is that we use a guided placement process that allows us to perform more precise implant surgery, improving success rates and the overall experience. This can even be done using only local anesthesia.

Customized Implant Care

3D guided implant placement
Options for non-traditional implant patients
Supportive therapies to encourage successful treatment
Minimally-invasive techniques
Solutions for single or multiple teeth
Denture stabilization or permanent restorations

Restoration and Maintenance

Your fixed restorations are the last stage of your implant treatment. Unless you’re able to receive a same day implant, most cases will include wearing a provisional appliance and then affixing the permanent restoration a few months later. Choose between individual crowns, multi-tooth bridges, full arch implants, or implant supported dentures to meet your lifestyle needs. Dr. Medina has a lab come directly to our office to assist with custom designs for a natural and beautiful appearance.