Dental implants have completely changed the face of prosthetic dentistry – and for the better. It uses mini implants embedded directly into the jawbone to find foundational retention and replace multiple missing teeth. However, for patients who are wearing them, there’s a slight chance of undergoing some pain or discomfort associated with the procedures that they want to deal with.
In this blog, we’ve listed down some of the most common reasons that patients report causing them dental implant pain and offered treatment possibilities for each accordingly.
Surgical Trauma and Initial Healing
A natural consequence that patients go through when dealing with going through surgical procedures is dental implant pain as your jawbone and surrounding tissues experience surgical trauma. This initial impact can lead to pain and swelling as your body begins the healing process.
Treatment: In most usual cases, a patient can deal with this level of discomfort easily by taking some over-the-counter pain relievers which can easily make the pain subside within a few days. Applying ice packs to the area affected by swelling and pain can also help alleviate symptoms during the first 48 hours immediately after walking out of the surgery room.
Infection at the Implant Site
Infections can develop if bacteria enter the surgical area during or after the implant placement. The telltale signs that an infection has taken root include more pain, redness in the area, and, most tellingly, swelling and fever.
Treatment: If you make sure that you have good oral hygiene and follow each instruction of the dentist, then you can prevent dealing with infections. If an infection occurs, your dentist may prescribe antibiotics to combat the bacteria and alleviate the pain associated with the infection.
Peri-Implantitis
A common affliction that a lot of people who opt for dental implants go through is a more severe version of gingivitis called peri-implantitis. It’s a disease that causes inflammation near the implant area and occurs because of all the plaque that accumulates in the nooks and crannies of a patient’s teeth (as well as the accretion of microscopic foodstuffs in the wedges of the implant).
Treatment: Get professional advice as soon as possible. If peri-implantitis is left to its own devices and continues to fester, the patient will go through more and more discomfort and pain, which can only be dealt with by undergoing the relevant tooth extraction surgeries or medicine that the dentist might prescribe.
Implant Overload and Misalignment
Making a precise placement of the dental implants inside the jawbone and other related components is the main goal of a dentist, and making sure that is the case is an even greater one, but sometimes, due to many factors (damage, illness), a misalignment can occur.
Treatment: Following your dentist’s guidelines for post-implant care is crucial in preventing overload and misalignment, and if issues arise, your dentist may need to adjust the implant or use additional support structures to redistribute the forces more evenly.
Bruxism and Teeth Grinding
If you’re known to grind your teeth during nighttime, then you may be dealing with what’s called ‘bruxism’, or teeth-grinding. Bruxism is heavy on your teeth and can cause you pain and potential implant damage due to the pressures it exerts on the implant. This condition often occurs unconsciously, especially during sleep, and can significantly impact the longevity and comfort of your dental implants.
Treatment: To mitigate the effects of bruxism, your dentist will suggest you wear a nightguard to protect the implants from grinding forces. Addressing underlying stress factors and adopting relaxation techniques can also help reduce the incidence of bruxism.
Poor Oral Hygiene and Plaque Buildup
If you ignore the necessary hygiene instructions about maintaining oral hygiene then you’re setting the stage for more plaque buildup around the dental implant, which are things that directly lead to inflammation, infection, and pain.
Treatment: Following oft-repeated protocols of consistent brushing and flossing, along with visiting the dentist’s office for professional cleanings, are some things that can help you rejuvenate how healthy your implants are. Implementing a diligent oral care routine helps prevent the accumulation of bacteria that can cause pain and compromise the integrity of the implant. If plaque buildup occurs, your dentist may perform a deep cleaning procedure to remove the deposits and restore oral health.
Smoking and Its Impact on Implant Healing
It isn’t surprising that smoking can directly damage your implants when considering the proximity of the smoke to the implants. Especially after you walk out of the surgery room, keep away from cigarette smoke because that will increase the risk of complications such as more infections that spread faster, delayed osseointegration, and naturally, more pain. The harmful chemicals in tobacco can impair blood flow and immune response, making it harder for your body to recover from the procedure.
Treatment: Quitting smoking before and after getting dental implants can significantly improve healing outcomes and reduce the likelihood of experiencing implant-related pain. Your dentist may provide resources or referrals to support smoking cessation efforts.
Treatment Strategies for Dental Implant Pain
Up till this point, we have been offering quick treatment fixes for each issue that causes dental implant pain. In this section, though, we will offer some broader pain management protocols that a patient can utilize or discuss with their dentist.
Medications and Pain Management: There are some popular over-the-counter medications that relieve pain such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen, and they can quite effectively manage mild to moderate pain dealing with dental implants. If you’re undergoing much more severe discomfort, your dentist may even prescribe you some severe pain-relieving medications or anti-inflammatory drugs that can sufficiently reduce pain and swelling.
Physical Therapy and Nerve Treatments: If the patient is suffering from something like nerve irritation or the cause of pain is damage, then physical therapy may be something that they should explore with their patient because that can really help them with alleviating the symptoms by enhancing the function of their nerves and mitigating discomfort.
Adjustments and Realignment of the Implant: For pain related to overloading of the implant or a generalized misalignment of its fit, which, albeit a rare occurrence, is still possible, your dentist may need to adjust the implant’s position or use additional support structures so that the forces can be spread out more evenly, helping the patient alleviate pain and prevent an increased number of complications.
Conclusion
In this blog, we dealt with the main causes of dental implant pain and, to alleviate the discomfort, offered the relevant treatments associated with each cause. Dental implant pain is a complex occurrence that can happen due to various issues, such as misalignment or infection.
If you’re seeking a more personalized dental assessment that is performed by some of the most well-known dental professionals in the community, then feel free to contact or visit Bay Area Implant Dentistry, a premium dental practice located in Bay Area, California. Schedule a consultation now!