Are Dental Implants Safe for you if you have Diabetes?

It is generally observed that people with diabetes are at a higher risk than non-diabetic to develop dental problems. Diabetic people have been battling through oral health issues constantly and so taking utmost care of your teeth and gums while maintaining your sugar levels is necessary. Dental implants are like rejoining a jigsaw puzzle of your missing teeth or tooth with the help of a prosthetic.

However, If you are planning to fix your missing tooth or crooked tooth or a whole set of teeth? And not sure if, going through a dental implant is safe enough for a diabetic you?

Let’s understand that modern dentistry has paved the way for safe procedures, which can combat diabetes risks hampering your oral hygiene, and replacement of your tooth or teeth through an implant is no exception. According to a scientific review of studies conducted on dental implants and diabetes, it is found that “When diabetes is under well control, implant procedures are safe and predictable with a complication rate similar to that of healthy patients.” 

This article explains how safe the implantation of a tooth is in a diabetic person, what are the safe implant techniques and its odds of success.

Table of Contents

Feel free to skip ahead if one topic catches your eye:

1. Dental Implants in Diabetes: Is it right?
2. Which dental Implant Procedures are safe for Diabetic Patients?
3. Factors affecting the Success rates of Dental Implant in Diabetic Patients.

Take Away

Dental Implants in Diabetes: Is it right?

Diabetes is a commonly observed metabolic disorder that increases your blood sugar level constantly due to the dearth of insulin production in the body. If you have diabetes and are planning for an implant, maintaining a stable blood glucose count is necessary. Otherwise, this procedure is equally safe in a person with controlled diabetes. 

The procedure involves extraction of the complete tooth along with the root and so, proper healing of the jaw and the bone structure is essential. All this depends on the natural healing of the jaw tissues around the bone called osseointegration. This complete integration of tissues, bone is necessary for proper amalgamation of the implant used. 

However, This integration and complete healing can be delayed in a diabetic person, and a person with uncontrolled diabetes can have difficulty healing and added complications. It’s very important to make sure that you keep your blood glucose level stable and this can be best established with the help of your dentist who would guide you the best.

The implants used in this procedure are prosthetics that replicate the crown of your tooth and have a root similar to that of a screw. These implants need to be carefully placed in a completely healed jaw structure. 

Your Oral Surgeon will ensure that the entire process is performed with utmost care while constantly monitoring your blood glucose levels. 

Which dental Implant Procedures are safe for Diabetic Patients?

There are different procedures followed while performing an implant of your tooth/teeth. These procedures depend on a variety of factors such as the site of tooth/teeth replacement, the number of teeth to be replaced, underlying oral and health hygiene. The type of dental procedure and its safety aspect in a diabetic person is discussed below. 

• Mini dental implants (MDIs): Also known as small diameter implants, because the implant size is smaller than the regular implants. It is a less invasive technique that involves the replacement of a single tooth. This technique requires continuous repair, replacement within the gums as the gums can be prone to more infections.  It’s important to note that this solution is not permanent and less fit in the case of a diabetic patient.

• Single tooth replacements: As the name suggests, this procedure involves the replacement of a single tooth assisted with a bridge technique.Though preferred for short-term results but can expose the adjacent tooth to decay and can end up in extra dental work.

• Same-day implants: In this procedure, the entire teeth can be replaced within a day, in the same sitting. But again, this procedure is not ideal for diabetic patients as they need time for healing and immediate loading can cause implant failure in a diabetic condition.

• All in four implants: Here the upper and lower teeth set is replaced completely in 4 implant molds forming a complete arc replacement. The beauty of this procedure is that it can accommodate the existing jaw bone structure and the implant can be placed accordingly. Considered to be most ideal for diabetic patients, no requirement for bone grafting, and causes minimal damage.

You can opt for the required dental replacement therapies depending on the requirement and proper consultation of your oral surgeon at the dental implant clinic in Gurgaon.

Factors affecting the Success rates of Dental Implant in Diabetic Patients.

Though implants in a diabetic person are safe, people with diabetes need to know how they could improve the success rate of an implant procedure. The factors that govern the odds of its success in a diabetic patient are :

• Stabilized Blood Glucose level: Generally, Your dental surgeon ensures that your glucose levels are stabilized throughout the implant procedure. However, if the sugar level fluctuates, moving ahead with the procedure would be difficult and can add complications. 
• Type of diabetes: One of the important factors is to note the type of diabetes. This diagnosis is done by your dentist who would be doing your implant and can further help you out with the procedure depending on the type of the diabetic condition.
• HbA1C testing: It is mandatory for a diabetic person to undergo an HbA1C test prior to an implant and the sugar level should be at least below 7% to ideally perform a dental implant successfully.
• Complete healing time: It is required to make provision for an overall healing and osseointegration process to be complete. This healing time is a bit extended in the case of diabetic patients, which can be a minimum of 6 months for the upper jaw and around 4-6 months for the lower one. This provision ensures a successful implant. 
• Internal bone requirements: In some cases, the internal bone height and width are to be adjusted which can be done by bone grafting. Doing so can improve the implant’s success by causing less damage.
• Lastly, diabetes is a condition that has a lot of associated comorbidities like heart problems, kidney issues, etc. A complete analysis of your associated risks is also necessary to improve the implant success rate.

Taking care of the above aspects can take you through a successful implant procedure. The entire procedure of a dental implant in a diabetic person needs to be well analyzed, diagnosed, and planned with the help of your dental surgeon.

Take Away

A systematic review and adequate studies have shown that complications and risks of dental implants are less and it is regarded safe in controlled diabetic conditions. Though diabetes has a lot of associated health problems, stabilizing your blood glucose levels throughout the implant procedure can improve the success rate of the implant. Not to forget, the provision of a good amount of healing time is essential. All the above aspects of implantation of your tooth/teeth are done at Smilexpertz, the best dental clinic in Gurgaon, which has a special panel of specialists who take care of implants, especially for diabetic people. Our dental specialists will provide you a complete assessment, diagnosis, consultation, and treatment in a well-organized and structured manner.