Dental Implant Failure - Washington, DC
Your Smile Deserves the
Highest-Quality Implant
Restoration
Rescue Failing Implants
at a Top-Rated Implant Practice
Dental implants are one of the most significant advancements in dental technology due to their unsurpassed durability, versatility, and ability to restore natural function and aesthetics. With that said, dental implants and their respective restorations are prone to gum inflammation called peri-implant mucositis, which can progress to peri-implantitis and lead to dental implant failure.
Suppose you have failing dental implants in Washington, DC. In that case, you’re in excellent hands at Elite Prosthetic Dentistry because our prosthodontist has achieved virtually no bone loss in implants he placed 20 years ago! And his innovative, patented implant technology has been used successfully to restore more than 14,000 dental implants.
What Causes Failing Implants?
From one tooth to an entire arch or to stabilize dentures, implant dentistry offers a successful solution for many restorative problems. While dental implants are the most reliable and only permanent tooth replacement solution, any of the following factors can result in peri-implantitis and failing implants.
Peri-implantitis is the Primary Cause of Dental Implant Failure
Peri-implant mucositis is a condition that leads to inflammation and infection of gum tissue surrounding dental implants. Early symptoms include swollen gums, tenderness, and oral sensitivity. As the condition progresses, possible repercussions include worsening jaw pain, gum recession, deepening gum pockets, exposure of implant threads, pus around implants, and loose posts.
Prompt peri-implantitis treatment in Washington, DC, from our experienced prosthodontist, can save implants by detoxifying and bone grafting them, sometimes without the need to remove the implant.
Preventing Implant Failures Requires Diagnostic and Surgical Expertise
At Elite Prosthetic Dentistry, we use cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) to assess bone width, angulation, and density. This comprehensive and phased analysis is necessary to determine if your implant site requires a bone grafting procedure before implant placement. The 3D image created from the CBCT scan fabricates a precise surgical guide that provides exact positioning for your implants. After the fusion process, our in-house lab technician creates the ideal, natural emergence profile without interference from misplaced implants.
As a top-rated Washington, DC prosthodontist and implant surgeon, Dr. Gerald M. Marlin was an early adopter of CBCT technology in 2002, when it was introduced to the U.S. Since then, the technology has advanced from being merely preliminary viewing-analytic software to state-of-the-art, interactive software allowing virtual reality “placement” of implant images in ideal positions on the CBCT 3D radiographic image for presurgical planning. Over the last 15 years, Dr. Marlin has solely used CT-generated surgical guides, providing the most precise implant placement
Saving Failing Dental Implants
When you entrust ailing implants to our highly accomplished prosthodontist, treatment is based on your unique circumstances. As an example, one of our patients developed bone loss seven years after placement and restoration. To detoxify and re-graft the bone around a failing implant, the abutment and crown were removed, bone graft material was combined with a growth factor, and the implant was shielded under the protective gum tissue. Imaging after four months showed new bone formation that filled in around the side and top of the implant. After five months, the implant was exposed, and the abutment and crown were reseated, thereby saving the implant without the need to remove it!