Implant fear and biologics

[Tooth56]

I am due to have 2 implants done on opposite sides. I am really nervous. The teeth have already been extracted. I am currently on a biologic med for an autoimmune issue. I was told by my Rheumatologist to hold the injection for one week prior and one week after but I am definitely worried about healing. I am also concerned about the fact that I am having one done in each side and how I will eat. The oral surgeon did not ask about sedation but I’m starting to think I may want some? I absolutely hate Novocain after some negative experiences. I’m wondering now if I would be better off going the bridge route…

 

[letsconnect]

Hi @Tooth56, any dental procedure, whether a bridge or an implant, would require local anaesthetic. What sort of negative experiences have you had?

If you feel that sedation would be helpful to you, it's not too late to talk to your oral surgeon about it - give them a call to talk about it .

Generally speaking, there are very good reasons why implants have become so popular compared to bridges. As long as you're a candidate for implants (which obviously appears to be the case if both the oral surgeon and your rheumatologist agreed), they are in many ways less invasive than bridges, which require the two adjacent teeth to be crowned. So unless all the teeth adjacent to the missing tooth are already crowned, bridges are quite an invasive procedure. Also, they are more difficult and time-consuming to keep clean than implants.

Did you talk to your rheumatologist and oral surgeon about what to expect healing-wise and what effect the biologic med might have on the healing process? If so, what did they say?