Songpa-gu Garak Dental Clinic - Conditions You Must Mention Before Getting Implants

Hello, this is Shin Seung-hwan, the chief director of Yonsei Uline Dental Clinic, Songpa-gu Garak branch, near Garak Market Station in Garak-dong, Songpa-gu.

Among those considering dental implants, many worry whether treatment is possible because of an existing medical condition.

In fact, at dental clinics, we often see patients who come in with systemic conditions such as diabetes, osteoporosis, stroke, brain hemorrhage, kidney disease, and liver disease.

Many people ask, “If I have this disease, does that mean I can’t get implants?” but in fact, we do not decide whether treatment is possible based only on the name of the disease.

The most important thing is how well the condition is currently being controlled.

Looking first at diabetes, it is typically known as a condition that slows wound healing. Since vascular problems often occur as well, normal wound-healing speed may decrease.

Because of that, many people worry that implants are risky, but in reality, if blood sugar is well controlled, most treatments are possible.

In particular, the inside of the mouth has abundant blood supply, so recovery tends to be better than expected. However, if blood sugar levels are severely uncontrolled or the condition worsens acutely, it may be safer to delay treatment.

In the end, what matters is not diabetes itself, but the current management status.

Osteoporosis requires a bit more caution. This is because the issue may not simply be that the bones are weak, but that the osteoporosis medication itself can be a problem.

Some osteoporosis medications have been reported to potentially lead to problems such as inflammation or osteonecrosis, because the jawbone may not heal well after tooth extraction or implant surgery.

So thinking, “If I take osteoporosis medication, my bones will become stronger, so implants will also attach better,” can be dangerous. In fact, it may be a medication that requires caution during surgery.

If you are taking osteoporosis medication, you must inform the medical staff in advance, and depending on the situation, we will check whether medication adjustment or a temporary pause is needed before making a treatment plan.

Many people with a history of cerebral infarction or cerebral hemorrhage are often taking anticoagulants or antiplatelet agents. Typical examples include aspirin-based medications or drugs that prevent blood from clotting.

The problem is that these medications can easily cause bleeding during surgery. Patients sometimes think of them as simple nutritional supplements and fail to mention them, but before an implant or extraction, you must tell us about them.

In these cases, what matters is not the disease itself, but the medication being taken at present. Depending on the situation, a temporary adjustment may be needed, and there are also cases where the procedure must be carried out only after consulting the internal medicine doctor in charge.

Therefore, you should not decide on your own to stop taking medication, and it is safest for the dental clinic and internal medicine clinic to coordinate the plan together.

If you have kidney disease or liver disease, it is also important to tell us in advance. After implant surgery, antibiotics or anti-inflammatory painkillers will be used, and depending on the type of medication, they may place a burden on the kidneys or liver.

In such cases, by switching to medication appropriate for the patient’s condition, we can carry out treatment more safely.

In reality, there are far more cases where treatment is carried out by accurately understanding the current condition and adjusting accordingly, rather than cases where implants are impossible simply because a disease is present.

In the end, what matters is not “whether you have a disease,” but “how stably it is currently being managed.” Even just telling us accurately about the medications you are taking or any existing conditions, without hiding them, can help us create a much safer treatment plan.

This has been Yonsei Uline Dental Clinic, Songpa-gu Garak branch.