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My experience of Zygomatic implants.

C

coral251

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 14, 2014
Messages
168
Location
South Yorkshire
Hi everyone.
I know dental implants have been around for a while now,and they are proving to be quite popular, but years of wearing dentures can result in lack of bone,resulting in not everyone being suitable for standard implants,this did happen to me,and I would like to share my experience with everyone to let you know the options available to you and what to expect.

Firstly I just want to say I did have the standard dental implants 8 years ago, I had a bit of artificial bone placed ,and had to wait 6 months for the bone to fuse with my own.I then had four implants placed in the top and four in the bottom,to be able to have Implant supported dentures
To cut a long story short,before long they started to fail,and fell out one by one,after about 18 months I had only 2 remaining in the lower jaw.
The dentist did offer to redo the treatment, but I would have to have more extensive treatment and more bone grafting,and this time it would have to be harvested from my hip,the whole procedure would be long and painful ,and still no guarantee that it would be a success,so decided not to bother.
Then,I heard about the 'no bone' implants,this sounded like it could be the answer to my prayers,so I did my research, I found out they were called Zygomatic implants, that are anchored into the cheekbones rather than the jaw,so ideal for people like me with lack of bone,this treatment sounded just what I needed to save my sanity,and improve my quality of life without the hassle of denture sores,fixatives,etc,etc.
Firstly I had to find a reputable dental surgeon who could do this treatment, as it is not a very common procedure as yet and not a lot of surgeons can perform this type of surgery ,also I must warn you it doesn't come cheap,it is quite expensive,but if this is successful,and i can get some quality years from it,it will be worth every penny.
Right, long story short,got my dentist sorted, had appointments with him for scans,and treatment explanations etc,decision made,so I will end here and move on to the surgery.
Regards.
Coral 251:)
The dentist I chose is Dr Alex Jones at Penistone Dental Care in Sheffield- that is near to me,but they do work as a team,and travel to different parts of the UK,so maybe they can recommend someone near you.
 
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Re: My experience of zigomatic implants.

My surgery was booked for 12/03/14,I arrived at the surgery at 8.30 am the surgical team were all there and I was introduced to each one of them,all were really nice and explained their various roles,I felt ok at this time,but very very scared,they said I had nothing to worry about,it would be over before I knew it.
Right,this was it,got comfy on the surgical bed,had the drip inserted into my arm and that was it for a while,but i wasnt asleep the whole time,
I think the op itself takes 4 t 5 hours,but not sure,I was sedated,and my mouth was completely numb,I couldn't feel anything, but I did hear the team talking sort of in the distance, and (sorry but trying to be as truthful as I can)could hear all the drilling,and feel some vibration from it too,though like I said no pain.
When the procedure was finally at an end,the team took the impressions to make my temporary fixed bridge,I was just left to relax and chill out a bit whilst they made the bridge.
To be honest, I couldn't really chill,or concentrate on much,my mouth felt numb,and like I had rubber lips,I was given paper towels to keep mopping out my mouth,as it was oozing and dribbling,and I didn't have much control over it,due to the lack of feeling in my mouth.
Straight away they gave me pain killers,they placed them on my tongue,I pushed to the back,then they sprayed water and I had to swallow them,as I couldn't drink this was the only way to take the pain meds.
Whilst waiting,the numbness did start to wear off,the pain and throbbing was starting to come,but after a while the team came back to fit the bridge.
Alex, my dentist,pressed on the area,and I winced,so he re.numbed the area,he then screwed in the bridge and I could go home,I dont remember much that was said,as I couldn't wait to get home,I felt absolutely awful.
I just remember vaguely him saying to go home and rest,and he would contact me in a few days with regard to making a post op appointment.
When I got home I looked in the mirror,I looked horrendous, my face was bright red and swollen,my mouth felt dry,sore,and was throbbing like crazy,but didn't much care now,I had done it,wow,so proud of myself.
I will post again about the progress of healing over the next few days.
Hope this has helped anyone who may be thinking of this treatment.
Please be aware,this is only my experience, we all heal differently, and our bodies and reactions to surgery is different too,age,overall health,tolerance to pain,all are down to the individual so my experience may not be the same for you.
Kind regards
Coral 251
 
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Great journal Coral.

I'm sure this will be of great help to others about to face this journey x
 
Hi again everyone.
As expected once I arrived home I felt awful all night,so just laid on the sofa all night and watched TV,dosing up on the prescribed paracetamols and ibuprofen, I did invest in a gel ice pack, which I found to be a godsend, and cooled my face down somewhat.
As I hadn't eaten all day,I did try to eat something, as I know you have to build up strength to recover from any surgery,the advice was not to have any hot drinks,and nothing that had to be chewed for at least 24 hours.
To have chewed anything would have been a physical impossibility, I did manage to slurp down a bit of scrambled egg,it was really quite difficult,so not only did I look like a 'miss piggy',I sounded like one too.ha ha.
As expected I didn't sleep much the evening of the surgery day,and was up the following day at 6 am.

DAY 1. 13/3
Wow,felt absolutely shocking, my face had swollen up even more,my mouth was sore and throbbing, I had a large bulky ridge across the front of my mouth from the incision site,a pounding headache, dizziness when standing, and nasal congestion.
Speaking was very difficult and sounded as if I were blowing raspberries through my teeth.
My top lip was still very numb,as were my cheeks,had a great ' trout pout' though,people pay hundreds for this ha ha.
My mouth was burning up,so i rushed to get out the ice pack again and dose up on the pain meds.
By 11 am I was quite hungry,so managed to eat some sloppy porridge oats,or should I say slurp it,couldn't have it hot at all though,my mouth was much too sore.
For tea,I had a Greek style yogurt with mashed up banana which was quite nice actually.
I decided I must follow all the advice on my after surgery care sheet,so as it was now 24 hrs post op,I rinsed my mouth out several times with salt water,and corsadyl mouthwash alternatively.
So a day of keeping on top of the pain and discomfort, and carrying on as best I could.
With this type of surgery I did expect a degree of pain and discomfort, but I was really not prepared for this.

DAY 2. 14/03
Up again at 6.30,not much sleep again,no improvement on symptoms, in fact they were worse my cheeks were burning up more than ever and my new bridge felt like it was too big for my mouth and rubbing on the inside of my cheeks,and my mouth feels like an inferno.
Still dribbling, spitting, and blowing raspberries when speaking, and eating what i could manage to slurp down easily,so yet another lazy day just popping the pills, rinsing and icing and watching TV.

DAY 3. 15/03
OMG,no change ,still got all the awful symptoms,they just aren't easing off at all, is this normal,should I still be feeling like this,should I contact the surgery,????its Saturday no one will be there, I was really starting to panic,surely I should be improving slightly by now,I was really quite worried but I somehow got through the day,with the aid of the pain meds,the ice pack and the mouthwash.

DAY 4. 16/03
Yay,I slept till 8 30,got up a little bit more sprightly this morning, I noticed the swelling had gone down slightly ,come to think of it,pain is not as bad,am I finally getting over the worst ?,as this 4 th day has progressed I am feeling much better,still got discomfort in my mouth, and still have difficulty in eating and drinking but my speech is improving and my cheeks have cooled down a lot ,I have still got some numbness,but not half as bad ,also i have been able to cut down on the pain meds too,hopefully I am now on the mend and the only way is up.
This brings me up to date now,but I will post again in a couple of days with any further progress.
Kind Regards.
Coral 251
 
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Glad to hear you are on the mend, the only way is up!! My turn soon OMG but this is so helpful at least I will be going in with my eyes open knowing what to expect has been a great help xxx
 
Glad I can help simbas mum,I dont wish to scare anyone or put them off,and like I said previously not everyone experiences the same symptoms, as we all heal differently, but I am no spring chicken, so I think maybe I may take a bit longer to heal.
I really wish I could have read something like this before my treatment, maybe then I wouldn't have been as worried thinking it wasn't normal and something was wrong.
I am sure you will be fine,and i wish you the best of luck with your upcoming surgery I will be thinking of you. X
 
UPDATE 7 DAYS AFTER SURGERY.

Hi all,
Well here I am at 7 days after surgery not 100% by any means,but definitely showing signs of improvement.
The swelling has practically all gone now,I think using the ice pack really helped with this,and also prevented bruising.
The headaches, dizziness, and nasal problems have all subsided,so the need for painkillers has ceased,although I do still take a couple at night.
The numbness in the cheeks is still present,but not too bad really,its the top lip and surrounding area that is the most numb,and only easing very gradually.

The main problem at the moment is the soreness from the incision site,it feels quite raw,hence making eating and drinking quite difficult.
In fact, yesterday I returned to the dentist,I was convinced I had gotten an infection, the incision site was throbbing and seemed to be more sore than previous days,and my cheeks were burning again.

The dentist said it definitely wasn't infected,but it was quite ulcerated,he gave me a prescription to get something to help.
What I got was Difflam Oral Rinse,I couldn't wait to get to the chemist ,get this prescription, and start using it.
It was brilliant, it just numbed the whole area,so therefore couldn't feel any pain or soreness, it says to use every 1 and half to 3 hours,so I used it every 2,it felt so good to have relief, and also to know it is healing ok,and no infection.
(Wish I had had this from the beginning, dont know why Alex didn't prescribe this instead of Corsodyl).

So everyone, that's it for now,my next appointment with the dentist to have the post op check up is next week,so I will post again on the result
All the best to all of you on your own dental journeys,this thread may sound a little bit off putting,but it is nothing compared to the suffering and anguish over the past 15 years,with ill fitting dentures ,and all the related problems because of the lack of bone,so I would say to anyone who is thinking of having this surgery, go for it.
Regards.
Coral.
 
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Hi everyone.

It is now 9 days since I had my surgery, things are greatly improved, the incision site is healing nicely, the numbness has almost gone,no painkillers required at all, think the worst is now over, but as the saying goes,no pain no gain,and I can now hopefully look forward to a nice set of teeth without all the hassle of the awful dentures,and actually dare to smile once again.
The final bridge will be fitted after the full healing process, in about 6 months time,can't wait to tuck into a nice steak.;D
Good luck to all.
Regards.
Coral
 
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Hi everyone,

Had my follow up appointment with the dentist today,it will be two weeks tomorrow since I had the surgery,the dentist said everything is healing lovely,still a very slight bit if ulceration at the incision site ,but with the salt rinse and corsadyl this should disappear in a few days.
I am still experiencing slight numbness above my top lip and a bit in my cheeks but he said this will be all gone in about six weeks.
So all in all I feel fine, and elated to know everything is healing ok and as it should be I am able to eat a lot better now,although I still have to eat with caution, not biting on or chewing on anything hard, until i get my permanent bridge,I can drink my drinks hotter now too,so I am well pleased and feeling really positive.
Regards.
Coral.
 
Glad you're healing okay! Keep us updated.
 
Thanks,yes I will update as I progressit will be 3 weeks on Wednesday since surgery, everything seems to be healing ok now,just slight numbness in the top lip and in the right hand cheek but my dentist says the nerve was very badly stretched during surgery, so this could take up to 6 weeks to go back to normal,it is not an easy journey with this op,but if it gives me a few years with lovely fixed teeth it will have all been well worth it.
Regards.
Coral
 
Hi everyone,
It has now been just over 6 weeks since my surgery,although everything seems to have settled down somewhat, I am still not 100%,I still have slight numbness in my cheeks and mouth area,and keep getting pain now and again at implants site,but it comes and goes,so hoping that this will eventually subside,but they do say it is 6 months before fully healed,so hoping everything will be ok after that.

New permanent bridge can then be fitted,and I can't wait,but even now,I think it has all been worth it,no annoying dentures flopping about and having to secure in with adhesive,if anyone else is considering this treatment I would definitely say go for it.
Best wishes to everyone on your own dental journeys.

Kind regards
Coral 251
 
Hi everyone just a quick update

Just had my 3 months check up,my dentist says everything is fine,and has made me an appointment for 8 weeks time to go for some impressions to proceed to making my permanent fixed bridge,I am so excited,just can't wait to get the final teeth,which are metal reinforced, and much much slimmer than the temporary ones.
Actually the 3 months seems to have flown by,so I am hoping the next 3 go by just as quick,then I will have my nice new teeth,all the pain and discomfort is now all forgotten,and I am really glad I had the treatment done.

The only thing that is still present at the moment is very slight numbness across the top of my gum,but my dentist said that this will disappear in time,it is because the nerve was really stretched,but like I say its only very slight,nothing like it was in the beginning.

So that's it for now,the next update to my blog will be with my new permanent teeth,and I will try and post some pics.
Thanks to everyone who has been reading my journal, and I hope it has helped if you are considering this treatment., and if you are,just go for it,it may be expensive, but worth every penny.
Good luck to all.
Coral.
 
22/07/14 update.
Hi everyone.
Had my 1st impression today for my final fixed bridge,actually it was quite traumatic,one of the 4 screws wouldn't come out the dentist drilled and drilled,but the screw just would not budge,I was getting quite panic stricken,and my mouth was dry,and aching being open wide for such a long time, and i broke out into a hot sweat,eventually the dentist had to make the hole a lot bigger and break the denture away from around the screw,once he removed the denture he attempted once again to remove the screw and kept asking me if I was OK I just asked if I could have a minute to rest my aching jaw,àfter this break he resumed his attempts,eventually it did come out,and everything was then very straightforward.
Although the screw took some removing I can honestly say I didn't feel any pain whatsoever.

Once it was all over,I felt very releived,and on getting up from the dental chair my pants were literally stuck to my bum due to the hot sweat and panic I had just experienced.
Just a small hiccup though, nothing I suppose to what I have gone through at the beginning.

So now I am 2 steps away from my new permanent denture,the dentist said they have taken well,so that's a relief,so I will soon have my nice new permanent teeth,next appointment is in August so I will update again after that appointment.
Thank you to all who have been following my journal.
Hope you are all doing well in your various journeys.
All the best.
Coral.
 
I am having this treatment done and I am very worried. Can you keep me updated. thanks
 
Hi,
Welcome to this site,there is no need for you to be worried,it is a bit of a painful healing process,but the procedure itself is nothing to be worried about,you will have obviously have read my journal giving full details of my experience I did actually have standard implants prior to this treatment but they failed over a period of 2 years,so it was back to the nightmare of dentures,and believe me,anything is better than that.

I did not know much about it before I went , i did lots of research,but couldnt find anyone else who actually had it done to know what to expect,so that is why I decided to write my journal on here,it gives it all as I experienced it,but the 1st implants were a breeze,2 days of swelling,a bit of soreness for a few days and that was it,so I suppose I expected something similar,but i was in for a shock ,but nothing I couldn't handle though,and now at nearly 6 months on,I am totally over it,all pain forgotten,and getting ready for my permanently fitted new bridge.

My journal gives you all the info right up until last week,the 22/7/14,when I had my 1 st impression done for the final bridge,I do not regret having this treatment whatsoever,I am over the moon with it,and so far so good,all nice and firm,and no sign of failure.

If there is anything at all you would like to know,please don't hesitate to ask,I will be only too pleased to help.

I wish you all the best with your treatment, I am sure you will be just fine,and you definitely will be glad you went for it.
All the best.
Coral:jump::jump::jump:
 
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Hi,
Welcome to this site,there is no need for you to be worried,it is a bit of a painful healing process,but the procedure itself is nothing to be worried about,you will have obviously have read my journal giving full details of my experience I did actually have standard implants prior to this treatment but they failed over a period of 2 years,so it was back to the nightmare of dentures,and believe me,anything is better than that.

I did not know much about it before I went , i did lots of research,but couldnt find anyone else who actually had it done to know what to expect,so that is why I decided to write my journal on here,it gives it all as I experienced it,but the 1st implants were a breeze,2 days of swelling,a bit of soreness for a few days and that was it,so I suppose I expected something similar,but i was in for a shock ,but nothing I couldn't handle though,and now at nearly 6 months on,I am totally over it,all pain forgotten,and getting ready for my permanently fitted new bridge.

My journal gives you all the info right up until last week,the 22/7/14,when I had my 1 st impression done for the final bridge,I do not regret having this treatment whatsoever,I am over the moon with it,and so far so good,all nice and firm,and no sign of failure.

If there is anything at all you would like to know,please don't hesitate to ask,I will be only too pleased to help.

I wish you all the best with your treatment, I am sure you will be just fine,and you definitely will be glad you went for it.
All the best.
Coral:jump::jump::jump:

Can I ask you did you have 4 Zygomatic implants. I am only having 2 on the top as not enough bone density there many thanks
 
Hi,
Yes, I did have four, it was touch and go, as to whether or not I had enough bone density, but scan revealed that they could just about do it and all seems ok so far.
May I ask if you have had a scan? as I was under the impression that if you haven't enough bone density in the jaw, there is usually plenty in the cheekbones, this is where they place the zygomatic ones.
Or do you mean you are having 2 zygomatic and some standard ones, sometimes they do a mixture, if not enough bone for all standard implants.

Coral
 
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They are going to reassess the upper jaw with another CT scan in order to provide me with the best long term solution according to the results. They can not guarantee in my case that upper implants are going to be possible, however, it will not be possible to maintain my upper teeth due to the infections and mobility seen. They have taken into consideration that zygomatic implants would be needed if there is not sufficient bone for the conventional All-on-4 treatment. Another option would be the full removable denture, although this does not sound like a viable option it is worth noting here as it is the option that carries little or no risk. that is what they said. what do you think? many thanks for your help
 
Hi,
Yes, the removable denture comes without risk, but certainly has its problems, if you have no bone there is nothing for the denture to adhere to, so therefore you have to rely on fixatives,this is both messy and really inconvenient, this was a nightmare for me,daren't go out for a meal without fixative in my bag, every time I ate it loosened the denture so it was a trip to the ladies to refix.

I hated the denture, I don't say the zygomatic implants are without pain and discomfort, and its certainly not cheap, but to me it was all worth it, and it doesn't last long really, so for me, it was one of the best decisions I ever made.
No more fixative, just sheer heaven.

So if it's at all possible for you to have the zygomatic implants, go for it, I wasn't able to have the All_on_four either, I just did not have the bone density in the jaw, but the zygomatic ones go up into the cheekbones.
Hope this helps.
Good luck with it all, and keep me updated on what you decide
All the best.
Coral
 
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