Risk and Complications

Risks and complications of Dental Implant Surgery

Like any surgery, dental implant surgery poses some health risks. Problems are rare, though, and when they do occur they’re usually minor and easily treated. Risks include:

Infection at the implant site

Bleeding and collection of blood at the surgical site

Injury or damage to surrounding structures, such as other teeth or blood vessels

Nerve damage, which can cause pain, numbness or tingling in your natural teeth, gums, lips or chin

Sinus problems, when dental implants placed in the upper jaw protrude into one of your sinus cavities

Failure of the dental implants to integrate with the bone

Where an implant does not integrate with bone, this is sometimes due to a patient having an unfavourable bone pattern or the presence of pre-existing pathology or infection. Often, the site can be left to heal for a few months and the implant successfully reinserted.

Occasionally implants can still fail after several years of having worked well. There may be several reasons for this; one of the most common reason is overloading of implants or too much stress being placed on the implants on account of a patient’s habit of excessively grinding or clenching their teeth.

Poor oral hygiene and failure to take care of the gums around the implant can lead to peri-implantitis and implant failure

Although complications can happen to the most experience surgeons, an assessment and appropriate treatment plan by a well trained surgeon is critical to reducing this risk and potent complications.