If you recently received a dental implant in Elm Grove, you may be wondering what you can expect from the healing process.How long will it take to get back to your day-to-day routine? Should you expect oral pain the week after your surgery? The team at Honest Teeth wants to keep you informed about the healing process whether you received your implant from our office or not. Here’s a timeline of what you should expect while recovering from dental implant treatment:
24-72 Hours After Surgery
Immediately after your implant is placed, you will likely not feel any significant pain or discomfort, thanks to the numbing and sedation used during the surgical procedure. Dr. Meinerz or Dr. Krueger may prescribe you pain medication to help with discomfort, so fill this prescription if it is provided.
You will likely feel some moderate pain and discomfort near the surgical site for at least 3 days (72 hours). Placing an implant does involve cutting into bone and gum tissue, so this is normal and to be expected. You may also notice bleeding, swelling, and bruising of the implant site.
You should avoid any strenuous physical activity for about 3 days after your procedure. Take things easy, and allow your mouth to heal. It’s best to eat a diet of mostly soft foods while your implant heals. Avoid chewing any hard foods near the implant site. You can brush around your implant but don’t brush on the site itself for at least 3 days.
3-7 Days After Surgery
After about 3 days, your pain and discomfort should begin to subside as your implant heals, and bleeding should stop as well. The implant site may still look bruised and continue to swell for 5-7 days, but this is to be expected.
Once most of the tenderness in the area has subsided, you can begin gently brushing the implant site with a soft-bristled toothbrush to clean it. It’s still a good idea to only eat soft foods for about a week.
After about 5-7 days, it’s usually okay to resume strenuous physical activity, such as working out, or working any physically-demanding job.
1-2 Weeks After Surgery
After about a week, you should no longer feel much pain or discomfort around the implant site, though there may still be some tenderness in the area.
About 2 weeks after surgery, your implant should be completely healed. You should feel little-to-no tenderness near the implant, and no pain or discomfort, and it will be time to get your stitches out, or they will dissolve on their own if self-dissolving stitches are used.
If you notice a lot of pain, discomfort, swelling, or other such symptoms near your implant after 2 weeks, this is not normal. It’s possible that the implant did not heal properly, or that it has become infected. You should see your dentist as soon as possible for a follow-up, and have your implant checked.
Know What To Expect When Recovering From Dental Implants!
While it will take about 3-6 months for the implant to bond fully with your jaw bone, initial recovery from an implant takes about 1-2 weeks. Hopefully, the above guide has helped you learn what to expect. And if you’re interested in dental implants in Elm Grove, Dr. Max Meinerz and Dr. Kyle Krueger are here to help. Schedule an implant consultation by giving us a call at (262) 784-7770, or stop by our office at 15255 Watertown Plank Road, Suite 100, Elm Grove, WI 53122 to make your appointment in person.