Garak-dong Dentist – Why Does Food Get Stuck Around Implants?

Hello. I am Shin Seung-hwan, the director of 연세유라인치과의원 가락점, located in Garak-dong, Songpa-gu.

Many people tell us that they feel uncomfortable because food keeps getting stuck after receiving implant treatment.

“Wouldn’t less food get stuck if the prosthesis were made slightly larger to fill the gap?” or

“Wouldn’t it get better if you put a crown on the tooth next to the implant and closed off the space?” We also often receive questions like these.

It is understandable that you might think this way when food gets stuck so frequently.

Unfortunately, however, this issue is somewhat difficult to resolve completely. The reason is the fundamental difference between implants and natural teeth.

Implants are fixed to the jawbone and do not move at all, whereas natural teeth gradually shift position over time.

So even if the prosthesis is initially made to fit perfectly, the neighboring tooth may move as time passes, eventually creating a gap through which food becomes stuck.

In particular, people who experience this discomfort often have only one implant or one or two implants at the very back of the mouth.

On the other hand, when several implants are placed consecutively, the surrounding teeth are fixed together with the implants, so this problem occurs relatively less often.

Even so, natural teeth continue to shift slightly over time, so it is impossible to completely prevent gaps from forming.

That is why some people occasionally wonder, “Why doesn’t the dentist just make it fit tightly enough from the beginning to eliminate this discomfort?” We also make every effort to create prostheses as precisely and snugly as possible.

However, because natural teeth have a tendency to move on their own over time, gaps may form again no matter how precisely the treatment is performed.

In some cases, minute spaces may also develop as the bone structure gradually changes.

In conclusion, it is realistically difficult to prevent food from getting stuck 100% of the time after implant treatment.

That does not mean you should simply leave food stuck there. If you do, cavities may develop between the teeth or your gums may deteriorate, so it is important to clean carefully after meals with dental floss or an interdental brush and maintain thorough oral hygiene.

We fully understand how uncomfortable it can be when food gets stuck.

However, if you take good care of the area through post-meal hygiene and regular checkups, you can maintain your implants in good health for a long time without major problems. So there is no need to worry too much; we recommend paying just a little more attention to your daily care.