If you have dental implants, you’re probably pleased with how cost-effective they are. After all, your tooth replacements have the potential to last several decades. However, there’s something you’ll have to do to ensure they reach their whole lifespan: Floss! Indeed, implants are far more likely to work for a long time when you floss them daily. Otherwise, there’s a good chance they could fail earlier than expected. To help you learn more, here’s a summary of why flossing dental implants in West Orange is essential and some floss-related tips.
Remember: Implants Need Care
Even if they’re artificial, dental implants still need care. If you don’t keep them clean, oral health problems will cause them to fail earlier than necessary. Should that happen, your dentist will have to extract and replace them.
Assuming you don’t want implant failure, care for your restorations daily.
How Does Flossing Implants Help?
A toothbrush alone isn’t enough to protect against implant failure. Since it can’t reach all the areas of your mouth, it’ll leave bits of plaque on your implants. That might be fine at first, but said plaque will build up if you don’t clean it off. From there, it could trigger peri-implantitis, an infection that causes your replacement tooth to fail.
Flossing dental implants in West Orange, however, can prevent this infection. You see, dental floss can reach and clean those remote places missed by your toothbrush. By doing so, it keeps plaque and oral bacteria from causing implant failure.
Implant Flossing Tips
Because implants are artificial, they need to be flossed in a certain way. Next time you clean your teeth, follow these steps when you get to your implant:
- Thread the Floss — Start by threading your floss between the dental implants and gums. If necessary, use a floss threader with a loop at one end and a flat edge at the other.
- Move the Floss Gently — Hold the floss around your fingers in each hand and slide it up and down the sides of your implant.
- Consider an Oral Irrigator — Some patients find traditional floss difficult to use. If you’re one of them, you may want to consider an oral irrigator.
- Exercise Strong Caution — Don’t push the floss down into the gum pocket. If you do, you might break the peri-implant seal that attaches your gums to your replacement tooth. Bacteria could then damage your bone and undo the implant’s fusion.
If you really want your dental implants to be a worthwhile investment, you’ll need to floss them regularly. Therefore, make sure to remember the tips above!
About the Practice
D&G Dental of West Orange is based in West Orange, NJ. Led by Drs. Med Dawoud and Paula Gencarelli, the practice emphasizes cutting-edge care. That said, its staff offers high-quality preventive, cosmetic, and restorative dental treatments, including emergency care. These services also make sure of the latest all-digital dental technology. For more information or to book an appointment, you can reach them on their website or by phone at (973)-731-2200.