If you have chosen dental implants as the solution to your dental restoration needs, you’ll be making a substantial investment in your dental health and appearance. Given that fact, getting the best possible results for your money should be high on your priority list. Meeting that goal means finding the very best dental practitioner for the job. So how do you find the best place to get dental implants?
Research is the key to doing that, and knowing which factors matter most in terms of getting great results can make the task easier.
Education and Experience
Choosing the dental practitioner who has the highest level of education and hands-on training in implant dentistry is the best way to ensure the results you’re looking for from your dental implant procedure, and many times that means choosing an oral and maxillofacial surgeon. While dental implants can be placed by periodontists and general dentists, oral surgeons are surgical specialists who have completed, at minimum, four years of residency in a hospital-based surgical program.
Periodontists, on the other hand, undergo training that focuses on the prevention and treatment of diseases of the gums and complete one or two years of residency, while general dentists may learn implant placement through continuing education classes, since it isn’t generally part of a standard dental school curriculum. Since dental implants placement is a surgical procedure, having yours done by highly-trained surgical specialist just makes sense.
Materials and Associations
As you’re researching your options in terms or oral surgeons to place your dental implants, one of the factors you’ll want to check into are the materials each one uses, and be sure that the one you choose uses only top-quality, name brand implants that are backed by solid clinical evidence of their safety and effectiveness. Additionally, since dental implant restoration is a team effort, you’ll want to be sure that your oral surgeon works with the best restorative dentists in the area.
High Dental Implant Success Rates And Satisfied Patients
Last but not least, knowing exactly what sort of track record your surgeon has with dental implant procedures is important, so ask how many implant procedures he or she has performed what his or her overall success and complication rates have been, and how any problems or complications are generally handled by the practice. Searching online for consumer comments and reviews can be helpful as well, offering a view into your surgeon’s practice from the patient’s perspective.
While taking those steps may seem like a lot of time and effort, keep in mind that dental implants, when carefully placed and properly cared for, can last a lifetime. That means that you’ll be living with the results of the dental restoration process for a long time to come, so isn’t it well worth that time and effort to ensure it’s done right?
For more information on dental implant placement and what are the best places to get dental implants contact our office at (202) 386-7100.