Is Your Implant Site Swollen?

Why does swelling happen after implant surgery?

Implants are an excellent treatment that replaces teeth and restores chewing function and appearance, but swelling and pain can occur right after surgery. This is a natural inflammatory response at the surgical site, and in most cases it improves over time.

However, if bleeding doesn't stop, or severe swelling comes with pain or a foul smell, suspect an infection and be sure to have it checked by your dentist.

If the infection progresses and the inflammation becomes severe, the fixture may, in unavoidable cases, need to be removed.

How to ease swelling!📑

For the first 48 hours after surgery, use an ice pack to reduce heat and swelling.

Avoid icing too much, as it can interfere with blood circulation.

On the day of surgery, it's best to sleep with your pillow a little higher than usual.

Don't spit out blood or saliva often; swallowing helps the bleeding stop.

An inflammatory condition to watch out for!🚨

Peri-implantitis is an inflammatory condition caused by bacteria invading the gums around an implant. Inflammation can cause pain with a foreign-body sensation, along with swelling. At first the discomfort may be mild, but if left untreated, it can develop into peri-implantitis.

Treatment by stage of inflammation!🧐

In the early stage, bacteria are removed with scaling and antibiotics.

If it becomes severe, the gums may be opened to remove the inflamed tissue, sometimes together with a bone graft.

Preventing inflammation!🤓

To prevent peri-implantitis, it's important to brush properly. Food and plaque easily get trapped between the gums around an implant, so you need to keep it clean by using floss and interdental brushes together.

Regular scaling and using floss and interdental brushes are the best prevention :)

If you found this article helpful,
how about checking your brushing technique once more today?