Dental Implants During Pregnancy

Pregnancy is a very special time. Your body will be undergoing rapid changes and some quite unexpected ones as well. Your oral cavity, one of the liveliest places in your body, is one that is some of the most affected. Since it is already a very important place in terms of immunology, and since so much of the struggle against invading bacteria happens in the mouth, it should come as no surprise that this cavity changes the most profoundly of all.

The immune system during pregnancy

Your body, and particularly your immune system, is under extreme stress when you are expecting. The foetus does not have an immune system of its own, and relies on the mother’s immunities and immunological system and antibodies to protect it as well. The developing infant also does not have its own vascular system, and the heart and organs are operated by the mothers blood supply. This means that the mom’s immune system is working overtime, and will not be able to do such a good job fighting bacteria.

Consequences

The consequences are that bacteria that are usually kept under control are given a chance to cause trouble, and invasive bacteria that usually are not given the time of day can now take hold and cause issues. For the oral cavity, this means that both periodontitis and tooth decay are much more likely to cause problems.

Dental implants during pregnancy

This weakened or compromised immunological state means that healing is also much more difficult, and an infection can much more easily occur, especially in the oral cavity. This is why any and all dental implantation can wait to be completed after the baby is delivered, and the mother is back to full health after having given birth. There is no situation in which dental implantation must be completed with a given time, as this is a procedure that can wait a bit. Even if you get an extraction during pregnancy (which may be medically necessary, as a systemic infection, or trouble caused by your teeth can affect the baby, and bacteria from periodontitis can enter the bloodstream, and cause birth defects, and can complicate pregnancy), you can wait until after the baby is born to get your dental implants. It is better not to rush and make sure that you deliver first. This does not mean that you should not take care of necessary medical procedures of course, it just means that this particular procedure, due to its nature, can be put off.

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