Frequently Asked Questions About Nuvia’s Dental Implant Process

Have questions about dental implants? You’re not alone! Get answers to commonly asked questions from Nuvia’s Chief Clinical Officer, Dr. Hansen.

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Dental Implant Process at Nuvia FAQs

Watch the video above, or read what Dr. Hansen has to say about the following questions we hear all the time about Nuvia’s dental implant process. If you’re curious about the cost of dental implants, download the FREE dental implant cost guide here.

If I get my permanent teeth in 24 hours, does it mean the quality is lower?

Here at Nuvia, we use modern zirconia materials, and these materials are wonderful, they allow us to provide teeth for our patients that are lifelike and real, and also extremely strong. So of course, there's no compromising quality when you get permanent teeth in 24 hours.

How can you do it in 24 hours? Don’t I need more time to heal?

The irony about asking “does a patient need to heal”, is funny because it's actually it was answered back in the early 90s when All-on-4® or immediate, you know, teeth in a day started to come out. We learned back then that you don't have to wait for full bone to implant healing before you attach something to a dental implant.

Wondering if you may be a candidate for permanent teeth in 24 hours? Take this 60-second quiz.

Are permanent teeth more uncomfortable than temporary teeth?

Permanent teeth are not any more uncomfortable than a temporary set of teeth. Permanent restorations are much stronger, they have much better material properties, your gums really can't tell the difference between that. So there's no real detection of difference, whether you have permanent teeth or temporary teeth as discomfort goes or as gum healing goes.

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How long will my permanent teeth last?

So fortunately, you don't have to worry about that. Your permanent teeth are designed to last a lifetime.

Dental implants also are a highly successful procedure and can last a lifetime. From person to person, it's very hard to predict, and certainly, no guarantees can be made on exact longevity of anything.

The most important thing someone can do for longevity are home care, taking care of your teeth, regular maintenance with your care team, and in addition to that, just your general health. So the the healthier you are for the longer, generally, the better everything is going to last.

I’m concerned you can’t help me, I have a lot of issues with my teeth.

It's not a problem for any patient if they come see us and they have existing gum disease or infections with their teeth, inflamed gums or loose teeth, any it's not a problem to have any existing dental and gum related disease or problems because that's what we're here to treat.

Treatment puts you on the path of healing to get over all of that. So, we encourage anybody and everyone that is dealing with that to not be afraid that that might, you know, disqualify them or something. Come see us.

Do I get to pick what my new permanent teeth will look like?

Every new patient has the opportunity to choose, what the look of their teeth will be like in fact, prior to even doing the pre surgery appointments where we get records and get all ready, we will actually provide for you a few different mock ups in picture format that kind of show your face, your smile, with some of the different shapes of teeth and what that might look, and that tends to be a helpful thing for our patients to to aid them in choosing.

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How long will I be in surgery for?

Generally, for a single arch of dental implants - about an hour of actual surgery, maybe two for two arches, but that can vary. It can be a little less. It could be several hours, just depending on the complexity.

What should I expect after surgery?

The two most common things to expect after your procedure are going to be swelling and discomfort, and that's probably true of almost any surgical procedure, and is certainly true with oral surgery and having dental implants placed.

For more on what you can expect from Nuvia’s dental implant process, see this article.

Why do I have to go home with no teeth after surgery?

Here at Nuvia, because we don't give temporary sets of teeth to people, you won't have a set of teeth immediately upon, you know, waking up from your surgery.

Instead, we'll use the 24 hours to design and make your permanent teeth that you'll then come back the next day for and receive them. 

See if you may be a candidate for permanent teeth in 24 hours with this 60-second eligibility quiz.

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Will I have a gap between my teeth and gums after healing?

A small gap may develop, but that's why we designed our teeth the way we did. Our dental implant process is built to be able to answer that. So for anyone as they heal, if a small gap develops, we have a solution that simply adds to that and is actually very simple.

Read about Nuvia patient, Ricky’s experience with his gap.

What happens if I don’t like the way my permanent teeth look or feel?

It's really rare for someone to be unhappy with their teeth or with the result of their smile because this is all we do day in and day out. We do this a lot. We help a lot of people. We have a lot of experience among, you know, many centers with many experienced doctors.

But in those extremely rare instances where there's something, you know, truly wrong or someone is unhappy, We're a supportive team of caring individuals and all a person needs to do is have a discussion with their doctor and care team, and discuss the issues they're having or the questions they have. They'll help find a solution.

How do you get the bite alignment right that fast?

Sometimes we will get the question about a person's bite - “how can you ensure that the teeth will come together, that the bite will be good, that quickly without using a temporary?”

Fortunately, we are just experienced enough and have a very tried and true dental implant process that allows us to dial in people's occlusion - their bite, the way their teeth come together - really quickly without any issues. In extremely rare instances, if there were to be a problem, we would just help alleviate that and help solve it, so it's not something we're worried about, and certainly shouldn't be something that a patient's worried about.

Ready to enjoy permanent teeth in 24 hours? See if you may be a candidate with this 60-second quiz.

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What if I have concerns months after my procedure?

As a patient with Nuvia, the most important thing is staying in really good communication with your team after and during the dental implant process. With your team at the center. Whether you have concerns immediately after your procedure, even a long time after your procedure - say it's been months -  or even years - the most important thing is direct communication with your doctor and with the clinical and care team at the center your dental implants were done at.

How long do I have to wait before I can eat my favorite foods again?

Everyone after surgery will be on a soft food diet, and that will generally last around four months. So most people, their favorite foods include foods that are not soft, like apples or steak. We're gonna ask you to wait to eat those until you get to that, you know, four month mark.

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Can I drink coffee?

You can drink coffee, but we don't want it hot. So it's not the coffee. Coffee is not a problem. The issue that we want people to avoid is when you've just had a procedure and things are healing. Really, really hot temperatures can harm tissues, they can encourage bleeding, and they could maybe speed up the dissolving of sutures too quickly. We just recommend you avoid hot liquids. So warmish, lukewarm, or cold - that's fine, but avoid hot things.

Will dental implants affect my speech?

Overwhelmingly, most of our patients don't really miss a beat, and they do just fine with their new teeth. Some people may need a little bit more time to adapt and get used to the feel and the presence of teeth, especially if they haven't had teeth for a long period of time. That can be an adaptive process.

It's rare for it to take more than a few weeks, maybe a few months to get used to it. A lot of our doctors will send people home with speech exercises, and that can be something as simple as counting from one to a hundred. Because you practice, you get used to things.

Got more questions about the dental implant process? Check out Nuvia’s blog for more information. If you’re wondering about dental implant cost, you’re just in luck. Download our FREE dental implant cost guide here.