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It’s been 3 weeks since I got the implants in, and 1 week since I got one upper implant out. The other upper screw was “kind of” loose, but not quite, and my whole upper left area (like, gums and above) looked red and inflamed and there was puffiness and inflammation around the upper screw.

I have been on an intensive anti-inflammatory regimen, rinsing with salty warm water every 1.5-2 hours, still using an eyedropper, because the screw is positioned so high above, I’m afraid when I simply rinse, the solution/water just doesn’t get up there. So I targeted that one spot during rinses.

I also took 6g of fish oil daily, vitamin C, and MSM, all of which decrease inflammation on cellular level in the entire body. I tried avoiding sweets and to get a lot of sleep every night. I had to stay up late a couple of times, and I actually noticed that the following day there was no change in the inflammation at all.

However, for 2 days that I slept in, I mean REALLY slept in, like 11-12 hours which is abnormal but I felt tired and like it was something I needed to do, the inflammation seemed to go down a lot during the day with no other changes! I think it’s important to let the body regenerate itself, give it as much rest as possible.

It’s the end of day Wednesday and just this Monday the screw was still a bit loose (I touched it gently with a Q-tip), but today it seems to be firmly in. The entire red area is normal light pink color, and there’s maybe 0.5mm of inflammation around the post.

I finished my Peridex bottle last Friday (2 days after my emergency appointment) and have only been rinsing with salty warm water. I’m sad to note that Peridex DID leave stains on the inside of my teeth, right on the gum line, that looks like tartar. My teeth constantly feel dirty now, so I’m going to get a cleaning ahead of my schedule (hopefully next Saturday, instead of in September). On the other hand, I will be getting the second upper screw fitted again in 5 weeks, and I’ll have to use Peridex for 2 weeks again. So maybe I should wait for that after all, and THEN get the cleaning done. *sigh* Don’t think I can stand the dirty feeling for another 2 months!

Well, here’s the news: 2 of 4 of my orthodontic screws got inflamed. One – more so than the other, and it also was very loose. I went in for an emergency appointment today and they had to take out the loose screw. Before they can put one back in, we have to wait for 6-8 weeks. This is an unexpected setback

In addition to the inflammation, I had deep grooves from wire ties cutting into my gums. In one spot gum even sort of receded (got lifted up). I was told it will go back to normal. I hope so!!! It’s on my upper tooth #3 and it’s right in the front and is very asymmetrical at the moment.

They took off the wire ties from the top completely. I now just have one screw at the top and a big ol’ red hole from the second screw. They re-tied the bottom teeth in a slightly different way so there’s not so much pressure on the gums. They also changed the wire at the top and put in a really thick, heavy-gauge one. I’m guessing this prevents the teeth from sliding easily back into the pre-implant position (my top teeth really moved in these 2 weeks, so it would be too bad if all the progress they made would be undone).

Removing the loose screw was a bit painful, so the doctor gave me one shot and then drove the post out with a screwdriver. I got a sad chuckle from seeing how assistants were afraid to even touch the screw, cause with only a bit of movement it would wiggle and I got a weird feeling in the bone, so I’d moan

Hope I can get the inflammation in the other upper screw under control. I’d hate to have to take it out, too and wait even longer. I was told to continue rinsing with Peridex beyond the originally prescribed 2 weeks. I got a bit of staining on a tooth from it, but they scraped the stain off today. I don’t mind the temporary staining, as long as Peridex helps. I know that most of the staining, if not all, can be removed by my hygienist at the cleaning.

I’m due for a semi-annual cleaning this September but I’d love to get cleanings more often while in braces (once every 3 months or so). However, it’s $100 every time and I keep telling myself I’ve already invested a lot of $$$ into my Oral-B Sonic Complete and Oral-B Professional.

Ortho-implants have a successful fitting rate of about 80%, which means one in 4-5 screws will not “set in” – it will be shaky and will move in the hole.

2 weeks after the procedure, my bottom 2 screws are firmly in and there’s no inflammation there at all. My top screws are a different story. At first they looked to be the best fitted, with no infection, bleeding etc. Now, however, one top screw is wobbly and infection has started around it where there wasn’t one at first.

I’m going in for an emergency appointment tomorrow, hopefully they can somehow stabilize it. I suspect they will screw in a larger diameter post, but we’ll see.

My face is no longer swollen, in fact swelling went away completely 2 days ago (1 week after the procedure). Redness and inflammation areas around the posts are getting smaller. I accidentally scratched around one screw with a toothbrush so it bleeds a little sometimes, and one of my lower screws still really cuts into the lip.

Cleaning the teeth now takes longer. It’s not particularly harder, but I’m using more tools to get the stuff out and it takes double the time as pre-implants. Proxy brushes (“bottle brush”) have been very useful, as well as my trusty Waterpick. Peridex is leaving some black stains near the wire underneath the elastics, so I’m picking those spots one by one with a super thin bamboo toothpick. I still feel I’m getting the best results using both my Oral-B Professional rotating brush and Oral-B Sonic Complete. I couldn’t be without either one now; they accomplish different tasks very well.

Teeth hurt like after a really tight adjustment. I saw movement on day 2: one of the 4 teeth being moved shifted by 1mm. It’s in the “freshest” space, where I had a tooth extracted right before braces. In the spaces where I had extractions a long time ago, I’m only now starting to feel some loosening. Despite all the discomfort I’m really happy to have at least some progress.

I can’t bite down into anything even semi-hard, and even lettuce leaves are hard to chew. I’ve been living on local ripe peaches, salmon and “blended” salad… and not much other food.

The “blended salad” is something my husband invented especially for me Green cabbage, leaf lettuce, dill and/or parsley made into coarse paste with a hand blender. This way I’m still getting my fruits and veggies. I wouldn’t be able to live on puddings and milkshakes, without any green food.

Another soft food that worked as a snack for me is bananas. Not my favorite food but they worked well as an “emergency” snack.

Today is day 3 with orthodontic implants. My face is a bit swollen, like if I put on a few pounds. Not any kind of localized puffy swelling, just overall my lower part looks fuller, and cheekbones are a little chipmunk-like. My face feels hot “inside” if that’s possible. I don’t have fever (measured my temp this morning), but internal temperature in the face is probably slightly elevated.

Lower posts are cutting into the lip – deep. So I covered them with wax for the night and today all day. I probably should’ve skipped that until it’s all healed up, because I just noticed there’s inflammation and discoloration around lower posts. Bacteria was probably getting caught up there in the wax. For now I won’t be covering them up anymore, even though it hurts a lot.
I’m rinsing with calendula tincture (1tbsp in 1/2 cup of water) and very salty water during the day, also twice a day – with Peridex. Hopefully, since I didn’t keep the wax on very long, infection is not serious.

I only ate twice today. Had chocolate cake with milk for breakfast, which sounds great even if not exactly healthy breakfast food, but it didn’t taste that great. I think Peridex is killing my tastebuds. Dinner was some buckwheat with canned salmon, both also tasted quite bland. Still can’t bite down properly and all this pain is killing my appetite, anyway.