Can Diabetes Cause Dental Implants to Fail?

Dental implants are screw-like posts surgically inserted into the jawbone to replace damaged or missing teeth. They are a better alternative to dentures since they solve most of their shortcomings. They restore the normal function of the tooth and esthetics.

However, dental implants are not a guarantee for all patients. Unfortunately, they are not for particular patients due to different conditions. The conditions include diabetes, cancer, immune system problems, drug abuse, and blood clotting disorders. People with diabetes may be concerned with getting dental implants.

Diabetes and Dental Implants

Diabetes is one of the top grounds for dental implant failures. It is because diabetic patients often have many issues. After all, the surgical implant wounds take a long time to heal, thus lengthening the recovery time. As the recovery time increases, developing an infection increases, thus heightening the risk.

Furthermore, diabetes worsens cases of diabetes since it reduces the immune system’s ability to fight infections and slows down the healing process. Periodontitis can also harden the possibility of controlling diabetes.

Can Diabetes Patients Receive Dental Implants?

Although it is said and proven that diabetes increases the rate of dental implant failure, diabetes patients can still receive dental implants. All you have to do is ensure you have well-controlled diabetes (type 1 or type 2). If your diabetes is well controlled, the success rate of your dental implants is high.

For diabetic patients to receive dental implants, they should be adequately prepared prior, during, and after the treatment. Proper treatment planning involves having enough prophylactic remedies and sufficient postsurgical maintenance.

Therefore, dental implant treatment in diabetic patients is a decision to be made by the patient and the dentist. They also check on additional factors such as smoking, overconsumption of alcohol, and level of physical fitness.

If you have diabetes and require dental implants, you should visit a reputable dentist near you. For instance, Stony Brook Dental Group offers Dental Implants in Stony Brook, NY. They are knowledgeable and handle each case professionally. For the case of diabetic patients, they will first discuss your medical history, treatment goals, risks, and success rate of the procedure.

Types of Dental Implants for Diabetic Patients

Diabetes can hardly affect dental implant procedures if the patient maintains their disease properly, has a healthy diet, and maintains good oral hygiene. You can decide on one of the several implant procedures, but only after consulting with your dentist.

• One-day processes – require the teeth to be replaced in one day. The procedure is not advisable since you need a slightly longer time to heal.
• Mini-dental implants – replace a single missing tooth. Since it does not offer a permanent solution, it requires frequent repair, making it not an ideal procedure for diabetic patients.
• Single tooth replacement – is best for short-term results. It utilizes a bridge technique. It, however, exposes the adjacent teeth to tooth decay which may worsen the situation.
• All-on-four – All-On-4 dental implant is the most ideal and standard procedure for diabetic patients. The dental expert implants four abutments into your jaw and then fixes a whole arch of teeth. They use it in cases where patients require a complete set of teeth. It does not require bone grafting, thus minimizing the risks associated.

The Way Forward for Diabetic Patients

Irrespective of diabetes, dental implants are still ideal for restoring your missing teeth. Even though you are at a high risk of infections and may require a longer healing time, it’ll be easier to work closely with your dentist. It would be best to be crystal clear with the status of your diabetes (controlled or not), so they avoid costly mistakes during the treatment process.

Conclusion

According to numerous research conducted since 1994, studies reveal a high failure of dental implants, especially in uncontrolled and moderately controlled patients. Nonetheless, there are substantial success cases when dental implants fix onto patients with controlled diabetes. You should thus disclose whether your diabetes is controlled or uncontrolled to give the dentist better information for appropriate planning.