Smoking or vaping are difficult habits to quit. But if you’ve been struggling to put down the cigarettes, the promise of a beautiful, authentic-looking new smile may give you enough willpower.
Smoking and vaping have long been known to cause a multitude of health issues, including oral health problems. Smokers are at higher risk of developing mouth cancer, gum disease, tooth decay and loss, and complications after dental surgery. While you can certainly still get dental implant surgery if you smoke, it considerably reduces your chances of a successful procedure free from complications.
As an advanced dental restoration procedure, All-on-4® supports an entire bridge or “arch” of new teeth on just four implants: two at the front and two at the back in either the upper or lower jawbone. If you’ve lost all or most of your teeth due to injury, illness, advanced-stage tooth decay or a hereditary condition, All-on-4® can provide you with an entirely new set in just 24 hours.
What kind of relationship do All-on-4® dental implants and smoking have? Will smoking after All-on-4® compromise the success of your surgery? Australia’s leading All-on-4® provider, Next Smile Australia, is happy to chat with you about the risks of smoking after All-on-4® and why you should quit beforehand.
The Risks of Smoking after Getting All-on-4®
All-on-4® is a procedure with a 98% success rate and a range of other benefits: a quicker healing period, a shorter recovery time, and no dental bone grafting. However, despite All-on-4®’s track record of success, these benefits aren’t a given. There are behaviours and risks that can negatively impact the success and longevity of All-on-4® dental implants, and smoking or vaping is one of them.
The biggest risks of smoking after All-on-4® surgery include the following:
Healing delays
Smoking and vaping are known for slowing down the healing process, including for bones and tissues. If you’re a smoker getting All-on-4®, smoking can delay the process of osseointegration, which involves the new dental implants fusing with your jawbone. Smoking can impede this crucial healing phase, potentially leading to implant failure.
Greater risk of complications
Smoking and vaping increases the likelihood of complications such as infections, inflammation and even dental implant failure after All-on-4® surgery. Smoking can lead to painful inflammation around your implants and reduce your immune system’s capacity to fight off infections.
Reduced blood circulation
Smoking and vaping reduce blood flow, which is important for healing. This can be painful and uncomfortable, compromise the success of your dental implants, and cause inflammation that leads to plaque. While All-on-4® dental implants aren’t subject to decay like regular teeth, problems can still arise when plaque accumulates around them.
Reduced implant stability
Nicotine and other chemicals in cigarettes and vapes can impair blood flow to the jawbone, leading to slower healing, weakened bone structure, and potentially contributing to conditions like periimplantitis. This bone loss can affect the stability of your All-on-4® dental implants and overall oral health.
The Impact Smoking Can Have On All-on-4® Teeth
The fact that All-on-4® dental implants don’t suffer from tooth decay doesn’t mean they can’t be negatively impacted. The impact that vaping or smoking after All-on-4® can have on your new set of teeth includes:
Increased risk of implant failure
Dental implants pose a 140% higher risk of failure in smokers than non-smokers. Smoking or vaping increases the risk of dental implant failure in several ways. It reduces blood flow, impedes healing, increases the risk of infection and increases the chance of plaque and tartar build-up.
Increased risk of infection and gum disease
Smoking or vaping weakens the immune system and reduces the body’s ability to fight infection, leading to an increased risk of peri-implantitis and other bacterial infections.
Staining and discolouration
Smoking can stain and discolour healthy-looking prosthetic teeth over time, as the nicotine and tar in tobacco products leave their mark.
Why Is It a Good Idea to Quit Smoking Before Getting All-on-4®?
There’s never a bad time to quit smoking or vaping. Cutting cigarettes out of your life will have a positive impact on your overall health, including your oral health. When you quit smoking, your sense of smell and taste improves. It will also reduce your risk of oral cancer and decrease your healing time after dental surgeries. Quitting smoking can slow down the spread of gum disease and reduce the chance of staining the prosthesis and surrounding tissues.
In Australia, organisations like Quitline are there to help you stop smoking or vaping and support you on your journey. The benefits of taking the plunge and quitting smoking just before your All-on-4® surgery include:
Improved healing
Blood circulation, a crucial factor in the healing process, begins to improve just two weeks into quitting smoking. The better blood flow you’ll have after quitting makes for a more efficient healing process. Nicotine also lowers oxygen levels in the blood, so the higher oxygen content in your blood will lead to better tissue repair and faster regeneration.
Enhanced bone integration
Non-smokers experience better osseointegration, the process of your new dental implants fusing with your jawbone. Quitting smoking aids osseointegration in several ways. Smoking destroys bone density over time while quitting helps maintain it. Quitting smoking enhances immune function, reduces inflammation and provides a stronger foundation for the dental implant.
Shorter recovery time
All-on-4® already has a shorter recovery time than traditional dental implants, and good dental health will expedite the process even further. The more efficient osseointegration that comes with quitting smoking means less time it may take to recover.
Better long-term oral health
Quitting smoking is beneficial for your oral health, and it helps preserve your new dental implants over time. While giving up before your surgery is the best possible option, quitting smoking after All-on-4® is essential if you want to maintain your oral and overall health over time.
Find out If You’re Suitable at Next Smile Australia
If you’re a smoker, you may still be suitable for the All-on-4® treatment. Your All-on-4® suitability is determined during a personal consultation with a member of the Next Smile Australia team. Candidates can include people who have lost multiple teeth due to injury or illness, people with advanced gum disease and people who can’t have their teeth restored by other means.
While All-on-4® patients don’t need to be missing every tooth, they typically have multiple teeth that need replacing. If you only have one or two teeth missing, traditional dental implants are better suited to your needs. During your consultation, a Next Smile Australia dental surgeon will sit down with you and assess your situation, taking your specific goals and dental and medical history into account.
Next Smile Australia provides All-on-4® dental implants in two stages: the provisional and final stages. After your final bridge is fitted, we provide an aftercare regime that gives you the confidence to maintain your new teeth easily. Along with general aftercare and maintenance measures, we’ll provide advice and recommendations for ongoing maintenance that are suitable for your situation.
At Next Smile Australia, we work according to a set of values that place our patients and their comfort at the heart of everything we do. Our dedicated and empathic professionals provide the highest possible quality of treatment at our industry-leading Super Clinics, with in-house laboratories and safe, hygienic surgical rooms.
If you’d like to find out more about the All-on-4® treatment, attend an information session or arrange a personal consultation by getting in touch with Next Smile Australia.