Top 10 Tips for Maintaining Your Dental Implants

Now that you have your dental implants – whether it’s one implant or multiple – what should you do to maintain them? Should you use a special toothpaste or toothbrush? What should you do to maintain those implants and make sure that they will work for the long term? For clarity, let’s break the top 10 into two categories: 5 things you can do to maintain your implants at home and 5 things that need to be done at the dental office.

5 At-Home Dental Implant Care Tips

Tip #1: Toothbrushing

The first tip is brushing your teeth, a minimum of 2 times daily. Your toothbrush can be electric or can be a conventional handheld toothbrush. Either way, you must brush twice a day, typically once in the morning and once at night. If you decide to go with an electric toothbrush, make sure that it is a new version and that has a pressure indicator light. It will show you that you are brushing too hard or too little. When it comes to the type or brand of toothpaste, the choice is yours. My preference is a more organic style of toothpaste but use what you personally prefer.

Tip #2: Flossing

You still have to floss around your implants. The one trick with the floss is that it needs to be done just a little differently around the implants than around natural teeth. This is because the implant emergence profile is usually round in shape and the natural teeth are oval. When you floss around natural teeth, you move the floss up and down. Around the implant you have to hug the implant crown, meaning you might have to floss with a little bit angle to ensure that you clean out all the food debris.

Tip #3: Waterpik

Your new best friend is a Waterpik. A water irrigator is a must for people who have dental implants. It helps flush the food debris that won’t come out with brushing and flossing. There are several models now – including newer, portable styles which are smaller and more impactful, so we prefer those. They are easy to maneuver and rechargeable. Remember, the best Waterpik model for your implants is the one that you will use regularly.

Tip #4: Mouth Rinse

There are various types available including Listerine and Therabeath. I prefer to have the non -alcoholic versions. In some instances we might prescribe a medicated mouth rinse such as Peridex (chlorhexidine). However, do not use chlorhexidine rinse for long periods of time because it can stain your teeth.

Tip #5: Interproximal Brushes

These small brushes are specifically designed for implant maintenance. Two brands to look for are Tepe and Gum which come in a variety of sizes. If there are gaps between your teeth the interproximal brush is a very good choice of device to clean your implants.

5 Dental Implant Care Tips at the Dentist

Tip #6: Regular Dental Cleanings

To maintain the health and life of your implants you must see your dentist for conventional cleaning twice a year. Just like your natural teeth, dental implants require regular maintenance and cleaning; there is no substitute. Having an implant does not take away the need for biannual conventional cleaning.

Tip #7: X-rays

You need to have x -rays done on a regular basis. This way we can evaluate the bone volume and make sure you’re not losing bone around the implant. If we find that you are losing bone we can do something to correct it, but we can only tell from x-rays. Your dentist can decide if you need x-rays yearly or every other year, and if those should be smaller x-rays or a CT scan image. Skipping them is not an option.

Tip #8: Check Your Bite

Remember, your implants do not move but your natural teeth will. With time, your implant can take on more biting forces because the natural teeth shift around and you start biting too hard on your implant. If you start feeling that the bite is off a little bit, it’s a good time to go and check with your dentist to have this corrected.

Tip #9: Check for Mobility

Remember, any mobility around an implant is not good. That mobility can come from the crown or it can come from the implant itself. Either way, if you feel that your implant prosthesis is loose, have it checked right away. If the crown is loose, but still on the implant, there can be bacteria leakage on the inside which can cause an infection. This can destroy the internal components of the implant, which is not good.

Tip #10: Check for Gaps

You may start to develop space between the implants and your natural teeth. With time, your natural teeth might shift and migrate and can go forward, but your implants will not move. This shifting will cause a little gap between the crown of your implants and the natural teeth, and that little gap can accumulate food debris. With time the food debris can cause gum disease, bone loss around the implants, causing a cavity around the natural teeth. This is something we see in long term between implants. So as soon as you can feel or see that gap, it is important to see your dentist. We can do some things to close the gap including adding some more contact to reduce the space. Mediating the gap can prolong the life of the implant and your natural teeth.

Follow these 10 tips and your implants will be part of your healthy and beautiful smile for years to come.

Please call Obeid Dental at (301) 652-9505 if you have any questions or to schedule an appointment. We serve the Chevy Chase, Bethesda, Silver Spring, Rockville, Potomac, MD and Washington D.C. areas.

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