Dental implants

A dental implant replaces a missing tooth from the root up: a small titanium post is placed in the jawbone, the bone grows onto it over some months, and a crown is then fitted on top. Done well, it looks and chews like a tooth of your own, and it doesn't rely on the neighbouring teeth for support, which is its real advantage over a bridge.

It is also the slowest and most expensive way to replace a tooth, and not everyone is a candidate. Both halves of that sentence belong on the same page, so here they are.

The path starts with a consultation with one of our dentists, X-rays, and a frank conversation about whether an implant is right for your mouth and your budget. We place most implants ourselves, here at the practice (we use the MegaGen implant system), so the planning, the placement and the final crown happen in one place, with one team. Some cases are genuinely complex, and those we refer to a specialist we know and trust rather than stretch to keep the work in-house. We'll tell you plainly at the consultation which kind yours is.

Am I a candidate?

Honestly: not everyone is, and it's better to know before you've spent anything. An implant needs two things from you: healthy gums and enough bone to hold it.

Gum disease is the first gatekeeper. Placing an implant into a mouth with active gum disease is setting money on fire; the same process that loosened your natural teeth will loosen the implant. If your gums bleed or you've been told you have gum disease, treating that comes first, and we'll be straightforward about the order of events.

Bone is the second. Where a tooth has been missing for years the bone slowly shrinks, and sometimes there isn't enough left to anchor a post. Before any implant is planned we take a CBCT scan (a 3D X-ray) so the placement is planned on your real bone, not a flat picture. Bone can often be rebuilt with grafting, but that adds time and cost. Knowing this upfront is part of the honest quote. Smoking, uncontrolled diabetes and some medications also work against healing; none is automatically a no, but they belong in the conversation, so tell us.

Implant, bridge or denture?

Three honest ways to fill a gap, and the cheapest one is sometimes the right one.

A partial denture is the most affordable and the quickest. It's removable, it takes adjusting to, and it's the least like a natural tooth. But it can replace several teeth at once, and for some mouths and budgets it's simply the sensible answer.

A bridge is fixed in place and done in weeks, not months. The catch is what it stands on: the teeth on either side of the gap are trimmed down to carry it. If those neighbours already have big fillings or crowns, that's no loss at all. A bridge uses them well, and it's often the best choice. If they're perfect, untouched teeth, cutting them down is a real cost that never shows up on the quote.

An implant leaves the neighbours alone and, once healed, is the closest thing to the tooth you lost. It costs the most and takes the longest.

Which one is right depends on the state of the neighbouring teeth, your bone, your health, and your budget, in that order. We'll lay the options side by side with actual prices at the consultation, including the option of doing nothing, because some gaps at the back genuinely don't need filling.

The honest timeline

Months, not days. Anyone promising a same-week finished implant is skipping the part where your bone does the work. The usual shape: assessment and planning first; any groundwork next (a failing tooth removed, gum treatment, grafting if needed, each adding healing time); then placement of the implant, which is a smaller procedure than most people expect, done under local anaesthetic. After placement the bone needs a few months to fuse to the post. This is the long, quiet middle of the process, and it can't be rushed. Then the final crown is made and fitted.

Start to finish, think in terms of a few months to most of a year depending on your starting point. You won't walk around with a visible gap the whole time (temporary options exist for teeth that show), and you'll have the full sequence, with dates and costs, in writing before anything begins.

What it costs

An implant is a significant investment, staged over the phases above rather than paid in one lump. The full written quote (placement, components, crown, and any groundwork) comes before anything starts, so the number you agree to is the number you pay. Medical aids differ widely on implants: many contribute something towards parts of the treatment, few cover all of it. Bring your details to the consultation and we'll check what your fund allows before you decide anything.

Frequently asked questions

Does getting an implant hurt?

Placement is done under local anaesthetic, and most people report less discomfort afterwards than they expected, closer to an extraction than to anything dramatic. Expect a few days of tenderness, managed with ordinary painkillers.

How long do implants last?

With healthy gums and good home care, many years. Implants are built as a long-term answer. They aren't invulnerable: the gum around an implant can get infected just like gum around a tooth, which is why cleaning and check-ups still matter.

Am I too old for an implant?

Age by itself is not the issue: bone and gum health are. We've seen candidates disqualified by their gums at fifty and cleared at seventy-five.

Can I get an implant the same day my tooth comes out?

Sometimes the post can be placed at the same visit as an extraction; often the socket needs to heal first. It depends on infection and bone, and we'll tell you which applies to you before the extraction, not after.

What if I can't afford an implant right now?

Say so. It changes the plan, not the welcome. A denture or bridge now doesn't necessarily close the implant door later, and we'd rather fit the solution to your budget than park you on a waiting list for the perfect one.