Conversations about dental implants can sometimes start emotional for patients because they often discuss a tooth that needs removal.
T he excellent news is St. Lawrence Dentistry has terrific options for replacing missing teeth. Patients want to know what implants are, how they work, and a realistic expectation of treatment timeline. So they are relieved to hear that Dr. Hawryluk Jr. can offer very predictable options.
Implants are not traumatic to place, but some patients are naturally anxious about implant dentistry. However, compared to 10 years ago, fewer patients need dental sedation for implant placement because the new implant placement techniques offered by St. Lawrence Dentistry minimize the time to place them and associated discomfort.
Part of the preparation for dental implants involves reviewing your medical history. Although implants are very predictable, certain factors can undermine this. Diabetes, smoking, and bisphosphonate medications can complicate the healing of implants. If elements that could mitigate the success of dental implants are present, Dr. Hawryluk can give you informed consent of the relative success of implants in your case. We may wait to place your implant until factors like diabetes are under control and you have stopped smoking. Dr. Hawryluk will have a conversation with you about the overall scope of your treatment, what your expectations are, and answer all the questions you may have in advance.
Some patients like to know everything about the implant procedure in advance, while some don’t want to have an extensive discussion. Dr. Hawryluk feels that you least need to know the fundamentals of your potential implant placement before proceeding. The doctor wants you to have a basic overview of a dental implant and how he places it in the bone. Also, we want to inform you of the rigorous sterility techniques used. We can go over pictures, models, and videos, which will help demonstrate the process. We believe our patients should have a basic understanding of the principle of “osteointegration” (how the implant solidifies in the bone) and why we must wait several months before putting the crown on the implant. This way, you can feel invested in the process and make informed decisions. Most importantly, as a patient, we need you to understand if the implant process will deliver on the expectations you had in mind.
St. Lawrence Dentistry has enhanced the implant process and delivered excellent results by incorporating guided workflow into their placement. That means we can take a patient who needs an implant and come up with a vision for their dental care. Then, planning digitally, we can transfer information into the real world by creating a surgical guide, which helps Dr. Hawryluk Jr. put the implant in its ideal position. The entire implant process becomes very predictable with this approach. When we show the patient the process, we find that they immediately understand what we are doing and have a much better feeling about moving forward with the implant installation.
Briefly, when a patient comes in for an implant consultation, we will order a CT scan of the planned area for the implant, take an intra-oral scan (digital model), and a ‘bite registration’ (how the teeth interrelate). We can digitally plan or “wax-up” where your new implant/crown will be with this information. We know the best place and angulation of your dental implant if we have a vision of what the final dental crown will look like in terms of its emergence from the gum, contour, how it hits against the opposing tooth. Dr. Hawryluk Jr. can be as close to perfect as possible regarding your implant placement. Guided implant surgery is much easier for patients to sit through than the old ‘freehand’ way. Most patients do not need sedation anymore, as the installation is very painless and quick. The use of the guided implant placement technique is increasing and is a tool that makes the implant process very comfortable.
Our office is in Port Credit, Mississauga, just past the Hurontario/Lakeshore intersection. We have plenty of free parking and are open Saturdays. If you are looking for a new dentist, please call us.
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