Dental implants are far and away the most permanent form of false teeth. Because they are screwed directly into your jaws, there is next to no chance of them falling out or slipping out. However, that does not mean that they cannot be damaged. Blunt-force trauma is about the only thing that can really damage your implants. Before you make the leap to implant surgery, you should know all the facts, even those that may never pertain to you:
Types of Blunt-Force Trauma
Blunt-force trauma can be anything from several hard blows from a fist to being ejected from a vehicle on impact during a car accident. Falling from a height of more than three stories high and hitting concrete is also blunt-force trauma. Landing on your face and head would cause damage no matter what, but the damage is different when you have dental implants.
To damage any bone in the body, you have to receive several thousand pounds of force, delivered at a speed faster than twenty-five miles an hour. Implants are not bone, but they do mimic the strength of bone with the inner screws. The screws of your implants would stay if your face or mouth was met with twenty thousand pounds of force, but the implants would not survive. Furthermore, your jaws might fracture as the implants are wrenched from your mouth since they would fracture anyway with that much force.
Damage to Your Implants
The implants are made from a dental grade polymer. Some can be made from porcelain as well since dental porcelain is even stronger. If you choose the polymer to reduce implant costs, you run the risk of damaging the implants sooner. In the event that you experience enough blunt-force trauma to the implants, it will loosen the porcelain ones, and break the polymer ones. A fractured jaw is also possible.
Understanding the Risks
While a blunt-force trauma incident is not an everyday occurrence, and damage to your implants is less than one percent via this cause, you should still know the risks. With any surgical procedure using titanium screws or pins, you have to know that there is still a small possibility that this is not a completely permanent or perfect solution. That is why you should know all you can about dental implants, including the above information before you go through with the procedure. It may encourage you to be a little more careful.
Contact a dental office like Aaron G Birch, DDS PC for more information and assistance.