Implants and temporary tooth

[sweet_n_sour]

Hi there,

I have an implant consultation meeting in 2 weeks but I just wanted to get some further information so that I can make sure that I ask the right sort of questions. My upper left, 5th from the middle tooth is fractured and will need to be extracted. Part of the tooth fell out last week although I have no pain or swelling whatsoever.

Anyway I was wondering that if I go ahead with the implant is it best to wait some time after extraction or get it done at the same time? I read somewhere it is better to get it done at the same time as it helps the healing process?

Also while the implant is in and healing (I believe it may be 3-6months) what happens during that time? Do you get a temporary tooth to cover the metal cup? Or do you just have metal showing for a few months. Does having some kind of temporary tooth or replacement add much to the cost? Ive been quoted £2000 for my implant where I can spread the payments but this is quite expensive for me so if a temporary tooth adds a lot more I don't know if this option is worth if considering it isn't permanent. I wouldn't want a high quality temporary tooth, its just purely to hide the metal implant and the ugly gaping gap I will have!

Any help or experiences will be much appreciated, thanks.

[Dr Pav Khaira]

There are different philosophies on this. As long as there is no bone infection and that there are no other contraindications, an implant can be placed at the same time as the extraction. Many dentists prefer to do it a few weeks later to ensure there is no bone infection

Oftentimes a dentist will provide a temporary denture, you would need to speak to your dentist about this. These can often be pretty cost effective as they only need to last a few short weeks

I hope this helps