How long do Dental Implants last?

Two of the major questions that people ask when it comes to dental implants is, “What is the long-term success rate?” and “How long will they last?”.

The simply answer to the long-term success rate of dental implants are that dental implants can fail, but fortunately very infrequently. Failure rates vary depending on the site in the mouth, whether they are placed into natural or grafted bone and whether the patient smokes. The overall success rates in natural bone is 95%, though this falls to between 85 and 90% in grafted bone. If a patient smokes it has been shown that they are statistically two and a half times more likely to have an implant fail than a non-smoker.

As to the longevity of dental implants, honestly at the present time we cannot answer this question. However, according to various resources , Gösta Larsson was the first patient who had dental implants placed. The implants were placed in 1965, and Mr. Larsson still had the original implants in function until his death in 2006. So the implants lasted for 40 years!

With that being said, undoubtedly, the best steps to take avoid encountering ailing or failing dental implants are to maintain meticulous oral hygiene, and evaluate the dental implant both clinically and radiographically at frequent recall visits with your dentist.