Since there are a number of steps involved in the dental implant process, healing will also involve multiple steps. There are other factors which also have an influence on how long the healing process will take, these include the patient's overall health and the number of teeth being replaced.
Here’s a little about what you can expect between the procedure and recovery for each stage of the implant process.
When bone grafting is required prior to the implant being placed, a waiting period of approximately four to six months will be necessary before the implant portion of your treatment process can get started. Grafting is required when the patient is lacking healthy bone in the area where the implant will be placed.
In cases where an extraction is required before of the implant procedure there may, or may not, be a healing period directly following the extraction. Thanks to new advances in dentistry, dentists can often place the implants at the same time as they do the extraction. Having the implant placed at the same appointment as the tooth is extracted means that there is no double healing time required. Depending on the patient's health, this stage will take around a week to heal.
Once the implant has been placed you will need to wait between four to six months while the bone becomes integrated with the implant metal. At that time the next part of the dental implant procedure can begin.
Finally, your dentist is able to add an abutment to your dental implant to which either an artificial tooth (a dental cap) or denture will be attached.