Hello again Bryanna
Sorry for the delayed response, my computer crashed and now I am set up again at last.
The gum work has been done and I believe it covered a portion of a natural tooth and the adjacent implant. The gum over the implant was thin and dark area apparent but I don't know if that dark area was the threads of the implant.
The gum surgery was done last Tues (now Sat) and this is the first day I am more comfortable although my upper lip is still swollen and the grafted site sore. I really really hope this is successful as I do not want this to have to be repeated I guess I did not realize how much discomfort it would cause.
I do have a question in regard to the needles which go deep up under and beside the nose area. Can they cause any damage to nerves and some slight paralysis. It seems each time I need freezing in this area it takes longer to recover and now when I attempt to smile the upper lip twitches.
Hopefully this is effect is temporary.
Since I have had these deep injections for freezing so many times now I am concerned that there may be accumulative effects to the area.
Good news is that now the final teeth are in place the salty taste is not there! and the teeth do feel good to my tongue being nicely curved instead of fat. Due to the swelling I still do not know how they truly look.
You are correct that the implants do feel very rigid especially after the past months of the partial and then the loose bridge which would fly across the room if I sneezed/coughed and did not get my hand up in time. Getting these implants has had it's funny moments as well as the trying times.
I will let you know in a couple of weeks how the gum grafting went and when I can, hopefully, smile nicely.
Judith C

Hi Judith C,

If a gum graft had to be done over the thread portion of the implant that means that there is very little bone over that part of the implant. The gum graft is meant to put a covering over the exposed threads to limit bacteria from getting in there. I'm sure you realize that this is not the ideal situation because dental implants need to be integrated with solid bone completely aroung their circumfrence. At the same time, it may have been the only option without removing the implant. This is something that will be monitored at your regular dental checkups........ so it's important that you continue to see your dentist every 6 months after all of this dental work is done.

Injections of local anesthetic anyplace in the mouth have the potentional of causing temporary or permanent paralysis. The location of the many bundles of nerves in our face and head vary from one person to another. They are usually located in similar areas in everyone, but not exactly. Generally, the paralysis is temporary but it can last up to several months in some cases before it goes away completely. Repeated injections in the same area can irritate the nerves more so than if done only once. This is something that you would have to discuss with your dentist so he can exam the area and monitor it with you.

I too wish you many wonderful smiles with your new teeth!!!

Keep us posted :-))

Bryanna

Dear Bryanna:
Thank you for your comments and I will discuss with the implant dentist the situation of not having one implant tooth not fully into bone and my best way to take good care of it. As always your advice is so helpful.
I just read the posts by Didi and goodness she has been through SO much with her teeth. Your comments about crowns are very astute and helpful.
I wanted to make some comments here as to tooth colour and especially when we are no longer young. My implant dentist wanted to crown the 'eye' teeth for cosmetic reasons (they are very dark) which I declined then he wanted to bleach them (I also declined) neither of these options seemed the best for me. However, I insisted that the colour on the teeth next to the eye teeth be shaded darker for a better blend of colour. (I have done a lot of work with colour and it is important in my life!) The dentist allowed me to go to the lab for custom colour matching - I thought the lab may ask me to sign a waiver for my request. Actually the old crowns had also been done this way so I knew it would be a nice result which is certainly is. When placing the new crowns the dentist did a little bonding on the eye teeth as well for better colour match so in the end I managed a good result with the dentist working with me. It is good for patients to know that 'custom colour' is available but probably has to be requested!
Goodness I am so glad to found you on this web site your advice is invaluable.
Hugs Judith C.

Hi Judith C,

You are so right about customizing the shade of the crowns to fit esthetically with the rest of the package! There are usually choices to be made in cases like yours and it sounds like you have done your homework!! It is not unusual for a patient to go to the dental lab for a shade match session with the dental technician ....... even on much smaller cases than yours. The whole idea is to have the end result look as natural as possible and at the same time, esthetically pleasing to the patient.

Yes, please do discuss with your dentist that implant that is covered with the gum graft. Hopefully you will have a positive result and that implant will give you many, many good years of chewing!!

Keep us posted....... ~'.'~

Bryanna