Sangil Station Implant: Why Food Gets Stuck — It Didn’t Happen at First, So Why Does It Get Worse Over Time?

상일역 임플란트, 음식물 끼는 이유, 처음엔 안 그랬는데 왜 점점 심해지는 걸까요?

안녕하세요.

This is the director of Seoul Vardi Dental Clinic.

"Food keeps getting stuck between my implant and my teeth."

When food keeps getting stuck in an implant that you worked hard to place,

you may first worry, "Could the surgery have been done wrong...?"

But this is often less about a problem with the surgery and more about a phenomenon caused by

the structural differences between natural teeth and implants.

Today, I’ll explain why this happens and how to manage and address it, using a case study.^^

Three reasons food gets stuck around implants Sangil Station implant, reasons food gets stuck

First, Gaps caused by tooth movement

Natural teeth are not completely anchored into the jawbone;

they are suspended by a thin cushion-like tissue called the periodontal ligament.

So they have a tendency to move very slightly forward over time.

This is why elderly patients sometimes say, "My front teeth keep drifting forward~"

On the other hand, implants are firmly integrated with the bone and are fixed solidly like a screw.

As time passes, the front teeth move little by little,

but the implant stays in place,,

so a tiny gap opens between them and food gets trapped there.

Second, Empty space caused by changes in the gums

Between natural teeth, there is gum tissue that fills the space in a triangular shape,

called the interdental papilla, which helps prevent food from getting in.

But when a tooth is extracted, this gum tissue disappears as well.

Even after an implant is placed, this pointed gum tissue does not fully regenerate.

As a result, a gap forms between the teeth, and food gets stuck in that gap.

Third, The small diameter of implants

Implants are made with a smaller diameter than natural teeth from the start.

Because of that, compared with the space around natural teeth, the space between implants is inevitably larger.

When the area around the implant is the red triangle and the area around the natural tooth is the yellow triangle,

the red triangle looks much larger than the yellow triangle, right?

In this way, because the space around implants is larger than around natural teeth, food gets stuck more easily.

Patient case) Food keeps getting stuck after implant treatment. Sangil Station implant, reasons food gets stuck

At first, there were no particular problems after treatment,

but over time, food kept getting stuck between the previously placed lower left implant (#36) and the natural tooth right in front of it (#35),

240106

causing discomfort for the patient.

Upon examining the mouth, the tooth right in front of the implant (#35)

was very loose, and the gums were swollen as well,

240217

Looking at the X-ray, the bone around the natural tooth had blackened and been resorbed,,

and the inflammation was also eating away at parts of the bone around the adjacent implant.

Because food kept getting stuck and was not properly managed, the inflammation gradually caused the jawbone to dissolve...

The natural tooth, which was too loose, unfortunately had to be extracted.

Treatment process Sangil Station implant, reasons food gets stuck

First, the loose natural tooth (#35) was extracted and the inflamed area was thoroughly cleaned.

Then, in order to preserve and use the existing implant as much as possible,,

careful bone grafting was performed around the implant to rebuild the collapsed foundation.

240217

A new implant was also placed in the extraction site along with bone grafting.

Prosthesis fabrication Sangil Station implant, reasons food gets stuck

Three months later, after confirming that the jawbone had healed firmly and well, we moved on to the prosthesis fabrication stage.

To solve the food-trapping problem that had been most difficult for the patient,

240706

a splint approach was chosen this time, connecting the newly placed implant (#35) and the existing implant (#36)

solidly as one unit.

If two prostheses are not made separately and are instead joined together,

there is no space left between the teeth, so the place where food could get in is blocked at the source.

A design that also considers maintenance Sangil Station implant, reasons food gets stuck

There was one more part we paid attention to here.

The prosthesis the patient had been using before was fixed with a cement type, a method using adhesive that was commonly used in the past,

which meant that if a screw came loose or there was an internal problem, the entire prosthesis had to be removed, which was inconvenient.

So this time, we replaced it with an SCRP method that has a small hole in the prosthesis.

If you are wondering what the SCRP method is and why it is good, please refer to the link below!

Thanks to this, even if the screw loosens later or internal cleaning is needed,

we made it so it can be removed at any time and maintained without damaging the prosthesis.^^

240106 (Before) 240706 (After)

Implants are just as dependent on regular maintenance as they are on surgery.

If the issue goes beyond simple discomfort from food getting stuck and is causing the jawbone to dissolve, then a detailed check is needed before it gets any later.

Please make sure to use interdental brushes or an oral irrigator (Waterpik) regularly,

and have a checkup every six months to monitor the condition.

If you currently feel that food is getting stuck between your implants,

I recommend checking the condition of your teeth before it gets any later.

Thank you.

▼Check the clinic location▼

Sangil Station implant, reasons food gets stuck — it didn’t happen at first, so why does it get worse over time?

Go to make a reservation call
02-481-4278

| This post was written directly by Seoul Vardi Dental Clinic for the purpose of providing medical information in compliance with Article 56, Paragraph 1 of the Medical Service Act. The information provided is for reference only, and we recommend that you visit a medical institution to understand your symptoms and receive guidance from medical professionals on the exact management method. All procedures/surgeries performed at the dental clinic carry possible risks depending on the individual (inflammation, bleeding, swelling, etc.). Please make decisions after sufficient consultation with the medical staff in advance. The treatment cases in this post were photographed with the consent of patients who completed treatment at our clinic, and the before-and-after photos were taken under identical conditions. |