Answer to the question: Should the elderly get dental implants?

The need for enhancing the aesthetic dentistry in order to own a perfect smile as well as ensure the ability to chew is always everyone’s concern at any age. However, there are still a lot of questions. For instance, “are dental implants safe for the elderly?” or “what is their success rate?”.

Elderly people are often prone to dental problems, such as tooth loss or tooth enamel erosion, which affects aesthetics and chewing ability. Therefore, to overcome these conditions, people tend to go to a dental clinic to get an implant. On the other hand, some are still hesitant to replace their missing tooth due to fear of failure.

If you are experiencing similar concerns, we can help you! Find out more information through the article below.
 

Types of dentures for seniors

Some types of dentures for older people include:

+ Removable (partial and complete) denture

A popular method of implanting is removable dentures, which is favoured because of its outstanding advantages. It is safe, it can reduce the risk of irritation, it is easy to disassemble, and it can help teeth stay aligned. 

On the other hand, removable dentures still show some certain minus points in comparison with dental implants, such as low aesthetics and durability. Besides using the denture, the elderly may feel some inconveniences such as being susceptible to entanglement, durability not too high.

+ Porcelain fixed dental bridge

Porcelain bridges help restore one or more missing teeth by forming a “bridge” between two or more anchoring teeth (abutment teeth) next to the missing tooth area. Porcelain bridges bring many advantages such as supporting the chewing function, contributing to the dental aesthetic, not taking too much time to be done but lasting for years.

Even so, porcelain bridges are not suitable for seniors with weak abutment teeth since the bridge could deform the two adjacent teeth soon. Besides, food debris can easily build up below the gums, which causes an unpleasant smell. After a short time, the bridge will need to be replaced due to the weak abutment teeth.

+ Dental implant

A dental implant is one of the most effective and modern methods of tooth restoration. Seniors could receive many benefits from dental implants, such as:

• High success rate

• Not affect taste perception

• Easy to maintain oral hygiene

• Highly aesthetic due to the natural-looking teeth

• Reduce the risk of tooth and bone resorption as well as gingivitis and tooth decay

Are dental implants safe for geriatric patients?

It is not yet known whether or not a dental implant is dangerous for the elderly because the result may vary depending on many different factors, such as:

+ Bone quality

+ Overall health (diabetes, heart disease, etc.)

+ Oral and dental health (gingivitis, periodontitis, etc.)

Since age is a sensitive factor and can affect the implant process. Thus, to contribute to increasing the success rate of cosmetic dentistry in general and dental implant in particular, you should  find a dental clinic that meets the following criteria:

• Good dental implant specialists

Skilled dentists are one of the deciding factors for the success of the dental implant. Therefore, you should find out as much as possible about the skill level of the dentists. You may look for reviews from other patients who have visited the clinic before.

• Performing within the standardized sterile conditions

The next thing you should consider is how strictly a dental clinic practices compliance with aseptic regulations. In that way, the risk of unwanted infections if any could be minimized.

• Modern equipment and facilities including

A dental clinic that is fully-equipped with modern instruments would help you reduce the amount of time it takes to diagnose and plan the most suitable treatment.

• Medical evaluation before dental implants

Taking a medical evaluation before getting a dental implant can help to better understand which course of treatment is best for you.

Hopefully, all the information given above could help you answer the question “can seniors get dental implants?”. If you are still in any doubts, take a visit to East Rose Dental Clinic for excellent pieces of advice. The clinic is currently prestigious in the field of oral and dental care. Over and above, it satisfies all the strict requirements for sterilization standards that are mentioned above.