Screw Retained vs. Cement Retained Dental Implants

As an oral surgeon, I wanted to share with you a question I often get asked after a patient has a dental implant placed, it’s healed and it’s ready for a tooth to be attached to it. They’ll come to me and ask “Should my tooth be screwed in or should it be glued in place?”

Well, the way that a crown is attached to a dental implant is very straightforward. The dental implant is essentially the footer or the base and it can be connected to the tooth through one of two ways. The oral surgeon will use either a set screw to hold it in place or it will be cemented to an abutment. The purpose of this process is so that if you ever chip or crack the crown of the tooth, it can easily be removed and separated from the dental implant without compromising the health of the dental implant, the gum tissue, or the bone. This process, therefore, makes it easier for you to extend the life of the whole restoration.

Which one of the two options you should select really depends on the recommendation of your general dentist. Neither solution fits everyone and neither solution is perfect, what’s important is determining what the best solution is for your needs. It’s important that you have that conversation with your general dentist and why they are picking the solution that they do.