Why Visit a Periodontist for Dental Implants?
Dental implants are utilized to fill in areas where there are one or more missing teeth from the mouth. These implants are surgically implanted into the jawbone, either upper or low. The metal implant fuses with the jawbone, making it a very sturdy post for a crown to be placed upon. A crown is simply the false tooth that takes the place of your extracted tooth. If you’re currently missing one or more teeth, you may likely be considering having dental implants installed.
There are various types of dentists just as there are various types of doctors. Understanding what dentist you need to see to have this type of oral surgery performed is a must. It’s important to note that in the field of dentistry, a general dentist can perform all procedures that fall within the dentistry realm. However, most general dentists will refer patients to specific oral surgeons who do the implant procedure regularly. Very few general dentists will perform dental implant surgery.
Instead of seeing your general dentist, they will refer you to a specialist. This could be an oral surgeon, an oral maxillofacial surgeon, or a periodontal surgeon. Each of these specific surgeons can handle the insertion of the dental implant. In most cases, you’ll get a referral to a periodontal surgeon. A periodontist is a dentist who specifically specializes in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of periodontal disease. Because periodontists routinely deal with dental extractions and diseases, they have a high demand for patients who need dental implants. Therefore, dental implant surgery is one of their most common types of surgeries performed.
When you go to meet with the specialists for your dental implant surgery, there are a few things you should be aware of. First, the specialist will want to do their evaluation of your mouth to ensure they concur with your general dentist on the dental implant solution. The location sites of the implants and their availability to work will be evaluated during your initial consultation with the specialist. Once everything is verified, the specialist will schedule your dental implant surgery in Los Angeles.
The periodontist or other specialists will perform the insertion of the dental implants into your jaw. This is the first step of the complete procedure. Once the screws are inserted into the jaw, then they will be given time to heal and osseointegrate with the existing bone. After the surgeon checks to ensure you’re healing properly and the implant is bonded to the jaw, they will refer you back to your general dentist. From here, your general dentist will finish the dental implant surgery by installing crowns or caps that go on the implant to create a false tooth.
Understanding how the entire dental implant process goes, it will help you to maneuver the steps in the procedure with ease. It won’t be a surprise to you that you may be seeing multiple oral health care providers to get the entire dental implant surgery completed. Remember it starts with a visit to your general dentist that turns into a periodontist for the surgery and returns to your general dentist to finish up the procedure. Expect the entire dental implant surgery from start to finish to last for at least a week or more. The entire time it takes will highly depend on your body’s healing rate and the availability of the dental professionals that you’re seeing during the surgical procedure.
