Dental implants for seniors
Are dental implants for seniors the right choice? As the years roll by and you get to a certain age people often want to know if tooth implants or crowns are suitable.
The good news is that dental implants or crowns work equally well for seniors as they do for younger patients.
With the advent of modern technology dental implants or crowns are equally effective and long-lasting in old age, in fact dental implants can change seniors lives by enhancing their appearance and improving their dental health, so age is no barrier when it comes to dental implants or crowns.
Is it ever too late for dental implants
When addressing the need for dental implants for seniors its important to firstly look at the length of time a patient has been without teeth, the length of time has a bearing on the treatment, for example when teeth are extracted for the first time your body reacts immediately by absorbing from the jawbone so that they can be used in another part of the mouth.
Your body wants to make the best use of minerals, however the longer you go without teeth the less jawbone there is to work with, so over a period of ten years your mouth may not have enough jawbone to support dentures, the process can bring about a condition called facial collapse, it could be the reason that seniors struggle with the fit of their dentures.
What should you do
I recommend that you book an appointment at Hungarian Dental Implant Centre Wexford so that the dentist can run some diagnostic tests and take a look at the condition of your bone structure, when the dentist looks at dental implants for seniors he needs to work out what he is dealing with, dental implants are a complicated procedure that might include bone grafts so that you can have the dental implants that you want.
Stereotype senior person
We have all heard about the typical stereotype senior, one that loses all their teeth and can only eat soft foods or their dentures keep falling out, the cost of full mouth implants is a concern.
Luckily most seniors can have dental implants unless there are serious issues with your health like diabetes, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, lupus, or psoriasis.
These conditions may not stop fitting dental implants for seniors, however the success rate of dental implants can be impacted by these types of conditions.
In addition research has shown that smokers have a 20% less chance of success with dental implants, in a nutshell the healthier the better the chances of success with dental implants or crowns.
Why not book an appointment at Hungarian Dental Implant Centre Wexford and find out more about dental implants for seniors,
Osteoporosis and dental implants for seniors
How does osteoporosis affect your teeth? It’s a disease of the bones, it causes them to become brittle, none loss is inevitable, it’s more common in seniors, more so in women following the menopause, women with osteoporosis are at risk of losing one or more teeth because of the condition. People assume because of its impact on bones and bone loss that their chances of a successful dental implant is reduced that simply is not the case.
In reality people with osteoporosis are more than likely to be a good candidate for dental implants in the same way that healthy people are, if you have experienced bone loss in your jawbone don’t worry dental implants could still work for you,
Book a free consultation, contact us today
You may find that dental implants for seniors will work for you, once you can enjoy chewing and eating food again, practice proper dental care and improve your nutritional intake you can slow down or reduce any further bone loss from the condition.
How long will you live
That’s a question that none of us can answer, what I’m really asking is it worth spending a lot of money on dental implants for seniors when we don’t know how much longer we have to live, I know it sounds a bit morbid, the statistics tell us that seniors in Ireland are going to live longer compared to our predecessors.
Since 2008 life expectancy or how much longer you will live has increased by 2.5 years for men and 2 years for women, there are more people over the age of 65 living in Ireland than ever before, thanks to modern medicine, diet and a healthier lifestyle we are in much better health than ever before.
Maybe you have been putting up with Ill fitting dentures for years, perhaps you have missing teeth and don’t enjoy eating as much as you used to, of course there is some discomfort in getting dental implants for seniors but think of all the benefits, especially in terms of how you look and feel.
Does quality of life matter?
I believe that as we get a bit older the one thing that my older friends keep saying is that quality of life does matter, good health also matters so at any age a healthy person can be have dental implants or crowns fitted, in our practice patients in their 80s and 90s have had dental implants for seniors fitted.
The feedback from seniors that had the procedure done has been on the whole very positive, it can make such a difference to peoples self-esteem and confidence to have this popular procedure done, as you get older it’s not too much to as to be able to sit down in a fancy restaurant and to be able at last to enjoy eating good food.
Should you get implants or crowns
A dental implant for seniors is a type of surgical implant that takes the place of a tooth that is missing, a crown is then placed on top of the implant so that it looks and functions just like a normal healthy tooth, a crown normally made of porcelain is made to fit over an existing tooth, which treatment will be the most suitable for you.?
I recommend that you book a Free consultation at Hungarian Dental Implant Centre Wexford where our very experienced dentist will be able to thoroughly examine your teeth and gums, he will also do a panoramic xray so that he has all of the information to give you a detailed dental plan including cost and travel to Hungary for treatment.
What are dental implants for seniors
Dental implants for seniors are artificial screws created in the laboratory to look like tooth roots, dental implants are placed in the jawbone allowing them to Naturally bend with the existing bone, this bonding provides a base to support artificial teeth also called crowns, an abutment or connector is positioned on the top of the implant to keep the crown in position.
The crown is made in the lab to fit into your mouth and to match the colour of your existing teeth, dental implants for seniors are the safest, strongest and most durable way to replace missing teeth.
Procedure
There are a number of steps to complete if you are going to have the dental implants procedure:
1. The consultation
One of our experienced implant dentists will do a thorough mouth examination and panoramic X-Ray
2. A very detailed dental implant for seniors plan will be emailed to you, all costs involved in getting the treatment done in Hungary are included, you just have to factor in the cost of flying there, your hotel costs and food.
3. The next step you arrive at our State of the art dental surgery in Hodmezvasahely Hungary to begin your treatment.
4. At the end of your stay you will leave the clinic and fly home with your brand new dental implants for seniors.
5. You will be given ample time to allow for any swelling to go down and for your mouth to feel comfortable with the new implants.
6. An appointment will be set for you to visit the Wexford clinic so that aftercare can take place, there are no extra charges for aftercare, the money that you cost in Hungary covers all of the treatment including aftercare.
What can you expect after treatment
It varies from patient to person but here are some of the things that you can expect following surgery for dental implants for seniors.
- Swelling around the gums and face
- A small amount of bleeding
- Skin and gums bruising
- Pain where the implants were put in
The dentist will use dental stitches that over time will dissolve, if that isn’t the case the dentist may need to surgically remove the stitches, the dentist may prescribe anti-biotics or painkillers depending on what is needed.
Most dental implants are successful
Most dental implants for seniors and others are successful, the success rate is in the high 90s, sometimes the bone and the dental implant don’t fuse together, in a case like this the dentist will remove the implant and try to do the procedure again in about 12 weeks.
How long do implants last
With the correct care and by practicing good dental hygiene, ie brush your teeth with an electric toothbrush and by using dental floss.
References
https://www.thejamesclinic.com/blog/what-to-do-if-you-have-dental-implant-problems-years-later/#:~:text=They include diabetes and rheumatoid,bone and, ultimately, failing
https://www.gov.ie/ga/preasraitis/f0da4c-irish-people-are-living-longer-healthier-lives-though-access-to-heal/#:~:text=Over the past decade we,life expectancy (Table 1.6).&text=At 80.4 years, life expectancy,the 1950s (Table 1.6)