Medisave

Specialist Dental Group™ is accredited by the Singapore Ministry of Health as a day surgery facility.
More information

Our Location

Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre
3 Mount Elizabeth,
#08-03/08-08/08-10
Singapore 228510

Opening Hours

Mon - Fri: 9:00 am to 5:30 pm
Sat: 9:00 am to 1:00 pm
Closed on Sundays/Public Holidays

Phone (65) 6734 9393
Fax (65) 6733 6032

For urgent matters, please contact the emergency number on your dentist's card or the Mount Elizabeth A&E department at (65) 6731-2218.

What is the difference among Instant Implants™?, Teeth-in-an-Hour™ Implants and Conventional Dental Implants?

A tooth is like a building - it is made of the tooth (the house) and the root (the foundation). When we are missing our teeth, we are missing the tooth and its root. A dental implant is a man-made foundation that allows the replacement of a missing tooth with a man-made one.

Conventional dental implants require a healing period of 3 to 9 months for the dental implants to integrate into the jawbone before artificial teeth can be placed.

The Teeth-in-an-Hour™ implant protocol replaces missing teeth in a one hour clinical procedure. Approximately 2 to 3 weeks is needed for treatment to be completed. Using the patient’s CT scan and computer based CAD-CAM software, pre-treatment surgery planning is done by the dentist. A customized surgical template is fabricated in Sweden and sent to the clinic before the surgery is carried out and new teeth are placed. Teeth-in-an-Hour implants are more suitable for patients with multiple missing teeth.

Our Instant Implants™ clinical research has shown that when the jawbone is healthy and meets our procedure criteria, we can place implants and artificial teeth during the same visit using minimally invasive techniques. The length of time for treatment to be completed is about 2-3 weeks, considerably shorter than the time frame needed for conventional dental implants.

Benefits of the procedure

Instant Implants™ cut short the overall treatment time dramatically. There is no need to delay for a few months of healing like the conventional implant protocol. There is also no long-drawn pre-treatment computer based CAD-CAM software modelling/planning time period required. However, very experienced specialist clinicians are needed to perform this procedure since the margin of error is narrower. Thus, it is crucial to select dentists who are experienced in the Instant Implants™ procedure.

Other benefits of the Instant Implants™ procedure, which are similar for that of dental implants are:

• Enhanced Appearance

  After teeth are lost, ongoing shrinkage of the jawbone occurs making the face look older. Dental implants can stop this process. Implants also prevent the bone loss and gum recession that often accompany traditional bridgework and dentures. Implant-supported teeth look, feel and function like natural teeth.

• Superior Comfort

  Dental implants eliminate the pain and discomfort of removable dentures. Unlike dentures which sit on top of the gums and jawbone, the implants are anchored firmly to the jawbone, eliminating gum irritation and the pain resulting from exposed nerves associated with conventional dentures.

• Improved Speech

  Ill-fitting dentures often result in mumbling, slurred speech or clicking noises. In addition, the facial muscles become tense in an attempt to hold the teeth in place. Implant-supported teeth enable patients to speak and eat with comfort and confidence.

• More Efficient Chewing

  Dental implants can restore chewing efficiency comparable to that of natural teeth. A full upper denture covers the roof of the mouth and reduces the ability to taste food. With dental implants, the roof of the mouth can be freed up so that food can be tasted and enjoyed significantly better.

• Protection of Remaining Natural Teeth

  Dental implants don't sacrifice the quality of adjacent teeth like a bridge does because neighbouring teeth are not altered to support the implant. The original teeth are left untouched.

• Highly Reliable

  Dental implants are considered an excellent option for teeth replacement and are highly predictable

How do I know if I would be a good candidate for Instant Implants™?

One of the key factors for Instant Implants™ is for a patient to have good quality jawbones. It can be easily assessed by an experienced specialist clinician using a panoramic dental radiograph. A comprehensive clinical examination including an assessment of one’s overall health condition is crucial in our decision making process.

What does the Instant Implants™ procedure involve?

With few exceptions, the Instant Implants™ procedure can be summarized as:

• Step 1: clinical and radiographic assessment, confirming suitability of the patient for the procedure.

• Step 2: carry out the implant foundation placement and teeth placement. Step 1 and 2 can be performed on the same day.

• Step 3: follow-up check up and placement of the permanent teeth (crowns) a few days after the procedure.

When will I be able to resume daily activities?

You should feel approximately 99% like normal immediately after the Instant Implants™ procedure, which means at the end of the day you should be able to talk on the phone, do business, enjoy a reasonable dinner, see your friends, watch your favorite TV show and look 99% like normal.

Will I be in pain?

We commonly hear our patients say that they have no pain during and after the procedure. Pain is seldom a concern nowadays in our experience. However, in order to have an uneventful recovery, we strongly advise our patients to take our prescribed medicine in a timely manner. This is an insurance for speedy recovery.

How long will the dental implants last?

Long term scientific data in the last few decades has show that overall long term success rate of dental implants is approximately 95% to 99%. However, we do expect some form of fixing and repairing will be needed for some of the implant teeth occasionally. With proper follow-up check-up, maintenance and improvement of technology, we are seeing improvement of overall success rate and reduction of failure rate.

We do encourage patients with dental implants to continue their regular visits to the dentists twice a year in order keep their implants in good shape.