Dental implants: procedure, materials, risks and costs
What a dental implant is, when it is an option, how the treatment proceeds, what implants are made of and what is known about longevity, risks and costs.
A dental implant is an artificial tooth root. It is placed in the jawbone and, once it has healed, carries a restoration – a crown, a bridge or a denture. This page covers the whole subject: what an implant is, when it is an option, how the treatment proceeds, what implants are made of, what is known about longevity and risks, and what the costs are.
What a dental implant is
The implant itself is a screw-shaped body, usually made of titanium and in some cases of ceramic. It replaces the root of the lost tooth, not the visible part. The visible restoration is attached to it once the implant has bonded with the bone.
When an implant is an option
Whether an implant is possible depends on the bone, the gums and general health, not on age. How many teeth are missing, and where, matters just as much.
- When implants should be placed
- Implants are suitable for almost any adult
- A single tooth is missing
- Several teeth are missing
- The jaw has no teeth left
- A denture no longer fits
How the treatment proceeds
Planning comes first, then placing the implant, then healing in the bone, and finally the restoration. Healing usually takes some weeks to months; in certain cases the restoration can be loaded earlier. If there is not enough bone, it can be built up.
- Planning the individual implant solution
- One-stage and two-stage procedures
- Guided implantology
- Healing of the implant
- Immediate loading
- Bone grafting and sinus lift
What is established before surgery
Radiographs show how much bone is present and where the nerves and the sinus run. A panoramic image is enough for straightforward cases; three-dimensional methods are available for difficult ones.
- Implant diagnostics at a glance
- Panoramic radiograph (OPG)
- Cone beam computed tomography
- Three-dimensional diagnostics
- Backward planning
What implants are made of
Titanium is the standard material; it has been in use for decades and is well documented clinically. There are also alloys containing zirconium and completely metal-free ceramic implants. Shape, length and surface differ from system to system and with the site.
- Titanium implants
- Titanium-zirconium alloy
- Ceramic implants, metal-free
- Short and reduced-diameter implants
- The surface of an implant
- How to recognise a well documented system
The restoration on the implant
The visible part sits on the healed implant. An impression is taken – conventionally or with a scanner – and the restoration is made in the laboratory or digitally.
- Implant prosthetics at a glance
- Digital impression taking
- Fitting the restoration
- Metal-free restorations
- CAD/CAM manufacture
Longevity, risks and aftercare
Implants have been in use for decades and have been examined in long-term studies. They are lost most often through inflammation of the surrounding tissue, through incorrect loading or through inadequate oral hygiene; smoking increases the risk. Regular check-ups and cleaning are therefore part of the treatment, not an extra.
What implant treatment costs
The price depends on how many implants are placed, whether bone has to be built up and which restoration goes on top. In Germany the statutory health insurers pay a fixed allowance towards the restoration, not towards the implant. A written treatment and cost plan comes before the treatment.
Alternatives to an implant
A gap can also be closed with a bridge or with removable dentures. Both have their own advantages and drawbacks, and neither involves surgery on the bone.
Who places implants
Implants are placed by dentists with the relevant further training, and by specialists in oral and maxillofacial surgery and oral surgeons. Our directory lists practices with this focus, sorted by town.
Answered briefly