Post Treatment Instructions
Your contribution to a successful treatment outcome
You can think of your teeth (and oral structures) as like a car/automobile that you are taking a long and fairly continuous journey with. During this journey things (teeth, gums, oral structures) will change and to some extent "wear out", for example, new teeth come out (fairly early on of course), teeth get worn down, gums may recede, At intervals in this journey the teeth go (to the dentist) for repair and maintenance. And everything that we dentists do by way of "repair" (like having a filling done) or "installing new parts" (like having an implant/bridge placed) will itself require maintenance and will itself wear out through usage. It is no accident that most surviving "classic" cars enjoy good maintenance which accounts for their longevity. The same is true especially of our teeth which, unlike other tissues in the body like our skin or muscles, do not have the capacity to repair or regenerate themselves.
Unfortunately, in the current goal and task oriented society most of us unconsciously carry a mental picture of a medical procedure or dental procedure as something like a "project" which we execute once, get it over with and then get on with other life activities. Unfortunately in almost all cases this is simply not the way it works.
Almost all dental procedures and treatment require some form of care by the patient after the treatment is concluded. In fact it might be appropriate to say that what the dentist does (by way of treatment) is just the first step, or few steps, in your journey with the implant/bridge/filling/etc. that was placed. The rest depends a great deal on you, the patient.
You can think of your teeth (and oral structures) as like a car/automobile that you are taking a long and fairly continuous journey with. During this journey things (teeth, gums, oral structures) will change and to some extent "wear out", for example, new teeth come out (fairly early on of course), teeth get worn down, gums may recede, At intervals in this journey the teeth go (to the dentist) for repair and maintenance. And everything that we dentists do by way of "repair" (like having a filling done) or "installing new parts" (like having an implant/bridge placed) will itself require maintenance and will itself wear out through usage. It is no accident that most surviving "classic" cars enjoy good maintenance which accounts for their longevity. The same is true especially of our teeth which, unlike other tissues in the body like our skin or muscles, do not have the capacity to repair or regenerate themselves.
Unfortunately, in the current goal and task oriented society most of us unconsciously carry a mental picture of a medical procedure or dental procedure as something like a "project" which we execute once, get it over with and then get on with other life activities. Unfortunately in almost all cases this is simply not the way it works.
Almost all dental procedures and treatment require some form of care by the patient after the treatment is concluded. In fact it might be appropriate to say that what the dentist does (by way of treatment) is just the first step, or few steps, in your journey with the implant/bridge/filling/etc. that was placed. The rest depends a great deal on you, the patient.