Dental implants: the latest in technologies used and if infection can occur

We spoke to one of our top dental implantologists Dr Amit Mohindra at The White Bridge Clinic in Oxford about the latest in dental implant technologies, including the Navident navigation system, which can help to accurately plan and place an implant. Here, Dr Mohindra also explains whether dental implant infection can occur and what you can do to avoid gum disease around your implant.

What is the Navident navigation system?

The Navident navigation system is used in dental implants to enable dentists to see where we are going into the bone through the use of real-time videography. This means we can very accurately plan and place your implant and keep the procedure minimally invasive to achieve a shorter surgery time and quicker recovery. We believe this leads to a better outcome in terms of implant placement and patient-experience and that's why we are so excited to have this at our clinic.

We are currently one of ten clinics in the UK to have the Navident navigation system. It has been used for many years for brain surgery and has only been introduced into the dental world over the last couple of years. It is really opening up exciting opportunities and allows us to keep procedures simple for our patients, which is what they want and what we want for them.
 

Read more on the navident navigation system

What are some of the latest technologies in dental implantology?

Over the last ten years, the most important development has been the availability of low-dose 3D radiographs, which has really changed the way that we do implant treatment. It allows us to have much more information before we start any treatment on our patients.

In more recent years, we now have the availability of computer implant planning software. This has given us a further step into being able to plan very accurately where the implant is going to go and to use stents and guides to ensure that implant is put in exactly the place that is planned.

We now have the Navident navigation system, which gives a much more flexible approach to the guided surgery allowing for, again, greater precision, more simplified implant procedures and quicker recovery.
 

How and why do dental implant infections happen?

The good news is that dental implants can't get tooth decay, however, they can get gum disease just like teeth. In fact, gum disease on implants can progress more quickly because as soon as you lose bone you expose the implant, which is a rough surface that becomes far harder to clean.

The way we avoid getting gum disease on our implants is, firstly, to ensure that the implants are placed in the best part of the bone so that it's fully surrounded by bone. This comes down to planning and making sure the implants are placed with precision.

Furthermore, we educate our patients on how to maintain and clean around those implants, which is slightly different from your normal teeth. We recommend that they have their implants checked by a dentist and hygienist every six months to ensure that they are doing everything they can to keep them clean. If you do get a little bit of inflammation it can be treated very easily if it is caught in the early stages. Regular maintenance and dental check-ups ensure that your implants last for many years.


Book an appointment with Dr Mohindra now if you would like to discuss having dental implants.