My husband just received six dental implants for his implant overdenture. He is currently wearing a temporary acrylic denture while we have the porcelain ones made. The big problem is that I can literally smell his dental implants and it is making me gag. It almost smells like vomit. I’ve even had to start sleeping on the couch. I would like him to trade out the metal implants he has for the metal-free zirconia implants, but his dentist says there is no way what I am smelling is his implants. I think this dentist just does not want to admit the metal implants are outdated because he does not offer the zirconia ones and we’d have to go elsewhere to get them replaced. What can I tell my husband that will help him understand how far superior the newer ones are so he will be willing to replace them?
Jade
Dear Jade,
I can sense you are frustrated. The truth is, while there is something causing that smell, I don’t believe it is his dental implants. Titanium is inert, so it will not have a smell. I bet if you asked his dentist to allow you to smell one that he has in his office, he would let you. My guess is the smell is coming from something not getting completely cleaned out of his acrylic dentures. He’s probably got some food or bacteria trapped in there. There are a couple of options for dealing with this. He can get something like a Waterpik that will help him get more of the food out. He can also rinse with peroxide, which kills bacteria and debris. I do not recommend using the peroxide more than that or he could get a yeast infection. The peroxide will not distinguish between good and bad bacteria.
I also don’t think you want him to replace your husband’s dental implants unnecessarily. Here’s why. The implants will have to be surgically removed. When they are removed, they will take some bone structure with them. In order to replace them with new implants, he’ll need to first get new bone grafted into that area with a bone grafting procedure. Then, after that heals, he will need another surgery to have new implants placed. Then, another waiting period for the osseointegration to take place and finally his dentures.
That is a lot of unnecessary extra surgeries for your husband. Plus, you take a huge risk of the second group of implants not being successful. These are working. Get to the real cause of the smell and don’t go through all those unnecessary procedures.
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