After Placement of Dental Implants

If you have undergone surgical placement of a dental implant general postoperative instructions such as those following tooth extraction apply.  Some additional instructions we wish to emphasize are as follows:

Diet

Soft food and liquids should be eaten for the week following surgery. Avoid warm foods for the first few days following surgery.  Return to a normal diet then as tolerated…being sure NOT to chew on the implant sites.  Do not consume alcohol for the week following your surgery.

Pain

You should begin taking pain medication as soon as you feel the local anesthetic wearing off. Often times the placement of dental implants does not create a great deal of pain following surgery.  You may be prescribed a pain medication and it should be taken as directed for pain relief. Otherwise the use of over the counter Ibuprofen (Motrin) can be taken as directed for pain relief.  Do not take any of the above medications if you are allergic, or have been instructed by your doctor not to take it.

Antibiotics and Prescription Oral Mouth rinses

Be sure to take the prescribed antibiotics and mouth rinses as directed to help prevent infection.  The prescribed mouth rinse should be used twice daily for two weeks following your surgery.

Oral Hygiene

Good oral hygiene is essential to good healing. The night of surgery use the prescribed mouth rinse before bed. Warm salt water rinses (teaspoon of salt in a cup of warm water) should be used after meals and as needed to clean the surgical site.  Brushing your natural teeth per normal routine is recommended the day after your surgery. After 3 weeks of healing we encourage you to begin gentle brushing around the implant sites.

Things You May Notice

When your implant was placed Dr. Bundy may have informed you that a “healing cap” was placed.  This “healing cap” is attached to your implant and will protrude through the surface of your gum tissue. You may see this “healing cap” when you look in your mouth.  It is important to keep this “healing cap” clean. Initially the mouth rinses are fine for this purpose.  3 weeks following your surgery it is important to lightly toothbrush this “cap” to clean the area and stimulate your gum tissue.

If you notice the “healing cap” has loosened please contact our office as soon as possible so that it can be re-tightened. It is uncommon for the “healing cap” to loosen.

Activity

Keep physical activities to a minimum for 3 days following surgery. If you are considering exercise, throbbing or bleeding may occur. If this occurs, you should discontinue exercising.

Wearing Your Prosthesis

Prosthesis (your tooth replacement) such as partial dentures, “flippers” or full dentures should not worn until Dr. Bundy informs you to do so. Dr. Bundy or your dentist may need to adjust the prosthesis so it does not put pressure on your implant while you are healing.  Insertion of your prosthesis too early may jeopardize a successful healing process.