Talking about the post maintenance of dental implants

It is a common belief that dental implants are expensive and function perfectly, and that you can eat whatever you want once the implant is in place. Maintenance and follow-up of the implant is often a key factor in determining the long-term success of the implant. This is a long and difficult task, which is an effective guarantee of the success of the implant program and requires long-term efforts of both the doctor and the patient. The maintenance of the implant denture requires not only in-office maintenance by the medical staff (doctors and nurses), but also the active cooperation of the patient in his daily life (outside the office). This requires the patient to be educated about the characteristics and maintenance methods of the implant denture, and to be aware of the important role they play in the maintenance process, so that they can actively and positively participate in it and cooperate perfectly with the medical staff to ensure the success of the implant denture. This article introduces the post maintenance of dental implants from three aspects: health education, self-maintenance and professional maintenance. I. Health Education for Implant Denture Maintenance To perform effective implant maintenance, patients must be fully aware of the importance of long-term effective implant maintenance. The long-term stability of implants depends on the success of osseointegration and is also influenced by the surrounding tissues of the implant. Oral implants do not suffer from caries or endodontic disease, peri-implant tissue disease is the most important cause of oral implant failure and has a high incidence. Compared to natural teeth, the gingival tissue around the implant is more affected by plaque. Once the mucosal closure is destroyed, pathogenic bacteria will gain access to the root surface of the implant, which will cause bone resorption, implant loosening and even implant denture failure. The key factor in health education regarding implant maintenance is to first make the patient aware that peri-implant plaque is the main cause of implant failure. The doctor should provide the patient with simple and effective oral hygiene cleaning methods and should also help the patient to establish proper chewing habits. Since the integration of the implant with the surrounding bone tissue requires a process, the chewing of food should be gradually transitioned from soft to hard after the completion of the implant restoration, so that the weight-bearing of the implant denture is gradually normalized. In the future, avoid chewing hard or tough foods. Second, the implant denture self-maintenance 1, mechanical plaque control method: (1) brushing, generally advocate morning and evening, each time not less than 3 minutes, can also be added after lunch, but also with dental foam, toothbrush is best to use health care toothbrush, the principle is a small brush head, bristles to be flexible, brush surface flat, the texture is best soft bristles, bristles 2-3 rows, the use of BASS brushing method will have better results. (2) The correct use of dental floss, toothpicks and interdental brushes. Flossing is best once a day, and it is recommended to use 30-1000px dental floss. (3) The use of water flush tooth cleaner, flush tooth cleaner adopts the principle of high-frequency pulse rinse, through the pump body to pressurize the water to produce 1200 times per minute of ultra-fine high-pressure pulse water column, and then through the nozzle to any part of the mouth, including toothbrush, floss, toothpicks, etc. not easy to reach the “dead space”, after the meal as long as the rinse 1-3 minutes The ideal results can be obtained by rinsing for 1-3 minutes after meals. In addition, the flosser uses non-solid contact cleaning, and the impact of its high-pressure pulse water is a kind of flexible stimulation, which not only will not hurt the implant and its surrounding tissues, but also can massage the gums, avoid gum recession, activate periodontal tissues, and promote the long-term health of the implant denture. 2. Chemical plaque control method: It is recommended to use 0.12% chlorhexidine rinse, 15 ml each time, 1-2 times a day, while alternating with saline, which is ideal. Or the uninterrupted use of dental foam is also ideal. 3. Quit smoking: To maintain the long-term success rate of the implant denture, it is necessary to quit smoking. Professional maintenance of the implant Home maintenance alone cannot completely control the plaque. To obtain the desired effect, it must be combined with regular professional maintenance of the implant, which should be done by the dentist with the active cooperation of the patient. Currently, the tried and tested methods of decontamination of the implant surface include ultrasonic cleaning, manual scaler cleaning, laser treatment, sandblasting and chlorhexidine rinsing. Laser treatment is currently considered to be the more desirable treatment. Moreover, patients with periodontal disease should undergo aggressive periodontal treatment and patients with high blood sugar should have their blood sugar actively controlled. Follow-up of the implant denture is also very important.