Healing After Dental Implants - What To Expect
If you have missing teeth, then getting dental implants at Mint32 Dental is a great way to replace missing teeth in the long term and prevent bone loss. While the length and cost of treatment can be a little more involved than other tooth restorations, you’ll find that it’s well worth it in the end. Read on to learn more about the healing timeline following implant placement.
24-72 Hours After Surgery
Immediately after receiving your dental implants, you will still be under anesthetic. Wait for it to wear off before eating. When you do eat, you will need to stick to very soft foods. In the first day or two, you should drink liquid-based foods like soup, meal replacement smoothies, or applesauce.
These foods require little to no chewing which will avoid disturbing the implant site. The first thing you will notice is continual bleeding at the implant site. It might seem like a lot of blood but that’s because the blood mixes with your saliva.
We will place gauze at the implant site following surgery and you will need to bite down on these for 30 to 60 minutes to form a blood clot. If bleeding continues, you need to keep changing your gauze with fresh gauze packs but make sure they are damp first. You should also get some rest and avoid strenuous activity.
Swelling usually peaks 24 to 28 hours after implant surgery. Apply a cold compress to the area for 15 minutes at a time, keep the head elevated, and take anti-inflammatory pain medication to reduce the swelling and tenderness. A blood clot should start to form within 24 hours.
Avoid vigorously rinsing your mouth, brushing or flossing your teeth, drinking alcohol, and drinking hot liquids for the first 24 hours. After 24 hours, you can rinse your mouth with a saline solution a few times a day and brush and floss your teeth as long as you’re careful to avoid the implant site.
3-7 Days After Surgery
Bleeding may continue for up to 72 hours but should not be excessive. 3 days after implant placement, there should be a fully formed blood clot and if bleeding is still persistent, you should contact your dentist right away.
It’s important to continue eating only soft foods for at least the first week. Avoid hard, chewy, and sticky foods that can get stuck in the implant site. It’s also best to chew on the opposite side of the implant.
Swelling and pain should be greatly reduced but lingering tenderness is normal. Swelling and pain should not be worsening each day; if it is, this is a sign of a dental emergency. Avoid strenuous exercise for the first few days after implant placement.
Make sure to keep your mouth clean by brushing and flossing your teeth and rinsing with a saline solution. You should still avoid brushing the implant site at this point.
1-2 Weeks After Surgery
Once you’re 1-week post-op, you can start to eat more solid and chewier foods, but you should still be sticking to a soft-food-only diet. If we placed dissolvable stitches in your gums, then they should be dissolved by now.
If your stitches aren’t dissolvable, you’ll need to return to Mint32 Dental to have them removed. You should be mostly healed within 1 week after surgery but may still feel some mild pain and tenderness. No bleeding or swelling should be present.
At 2 weeks post-implant placement, you should be nearly completely healed and can start to eat and brush like normal. Keep in mind that if you place pressure on the implant, you may still feel tender but otherwise, you shouldn’t feel discomfort. You will need 3 to 6 months for osseointegration to be complete.
Wondering If Implants Are Right for You?
Even though it takes a few months to completely heal from dental implants, the bulk of the healing occurs within the first 2 weeks. After this, you’ll face minimal restrictions and can live your life freely.
Best of all, once your implants are fully healed, you’ll experience more freedom than ever. If you’re wondering if implants could be right for you, contact us at Mint32 Dental today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Leidy Riano Galeano.