Dental Implants post operative care for patients
Post-operative care
- For the first few days after surgery, avoid physical exertion (i.e. sports, heavy lifting).
- Avoid alcohol for a few days as this can affect the healing tissues.
- Avoid smoking for two weeks, as this will slow down the healing process.
- Avoid hot drinks such as tea and coffee for the first 24 hours.
- Denture wearers should discuss with me when they may resume with their dentures. Leaving the denture out after surgery will help with the healing of the soft tissues.
- After 48 hours, rinse gently with Corsodyl mouthwash three or four times a day. This will help the wound to heal. Avoid brushing the area.
- If an antibiotic has been prescribed, please take as directed and finish the course.
- Please maintain a fairly soft, high protein diet throughout the post-operative phase.
Do not use a water pik, play with the area with your tongue, or eat hard and crusty foods. - If you have a sinus lift procedure or upper posterior implants placed, please avoid blowing your nose for approximately two weeks after surgery. This will help prevent infection. Please avoid flying or swimming for two weeks after surgery and please try to sneeze through your mouth and not your nose.
- It is especially important your oral hygiene and home care is maintained to the highest standard and that all oral hygiene appointments must be attended.
- As with any surgery, the possibility of infection exists. If anything concerns you during the time implants have been placed and up to the point of exposure, please contact us and we will advise.
Ongoing care for patients
The success of your implants depends on your personal oral hygiene practices and regular visits to our hygienist and dentist. Professional cleaning should be done every three months.
It is extremely important for you to follow a daily programme of oral hygiene at home, and we can help you with this. While cleaning should be done as often as possible, the most important times are after breakfast and after your last meal of the evening.
The following recommendations for cleaning around your implant abutments should be followed twice daily.
- Use a soft nylon bristle brush such as Oral B, Butler, Reach or Colgate Before using the brush, rinse the bristles with hot water to soften them
- Brush gently with anti-plaque white toothpaste.
- Floss around each implant twice daily with regular dental floss or super floss, or use an interproximal cleaning device such as a tepe brush.
- Rinse for at least 15 seconds with an anti-plaque mouthwash.
- If you have an irrigation system, use an anti-plaque mouthwash, and irrigate around each implant abutment at low This type of irrigation system is highly recommended to remove plaque under your gums, which harbour toxic bacteria. Rinsing out the toxins will lessen the chances of inflammation around the implant abutment.
- If you have an electric toothbrush, use it to clean the implant abutments.
- It is advisable to occasionally check the inserts for a bacterial film by using a plaque disclosing Chewing one tablet will turn your saliva red, which you should then wash around your mouth. After about a minute, discharge the saliva and rinse your mouth out with water. The bacterial film will have absorbed the colour, making it easier to find and remove.
- Monitor yourself at home in order to detect early signs of inflammationand contact us if you have any.
Smoking will significantly detract from the long-term success of implant treatment and will void any guarantees that we can provide.
