A quick overview of the timeline

Before going into detail, here is what the full journey looks like at a glance:

From first phone call to finished crown, most patients complete the process in four to six months. If bone grafting is required, allow an additional three to six months of healing before the implant is placed.

1. Appointment 1 — Consultation and CBCT scan (30-45 minutes)

2. Appointment 2 — Treatment planning discussion (20-30 minutes, sometimes combined with appointment 1)

3. Preliminary work if needed — extraction, bone graft, or gum treatment (separate visit/s)

4. Appointment 3 — Implant surgery (45-90 minutes)

5. Healing period — osseointegration (3-6 months, no chair time)

6. Appointment 4 — Abutment placement and digital scan (30-45 minutes)

7. Appointment 5 — Final crown fitting (30-45 minutes)

Step 1 — Initial consultation and CBCT scan

The process begins with a thorough assessment. Your dentist will examine the area where the tooth is missing (or needs to be removed), check the health of your gums, and review your medical history. Certain conditions — uncontrolled diabetes, active gum disease, heavy smoking, some medications including bisphosphonates — can affect implant healing, so this conversation matters.

You will then have a CBCT scan (cone beam computed tomography). This is a 3D X-ray that takes about 15 seconds to capture and gives your dentist a detailed picture of your jawbone density, width, height, and the position of nerves and sinuses. It is the single most important diagnostic tool for implant planning. Standard dental X-rays are two-dimensional and cannot show bone depth, which is why the CBCT is essential.

This appointment takes approximately 30 to 45 minutes. You will leave with a clear understanding of whether an implant is feasible, whether any preliminary work is needed, and a written estimate of costs and timeline.

Step 2 — Treatment planning

Your dentist uses the CBCT data to plan the exact position, angle, and depth of the implant. This is often done digitally using specialist implant planning software. The plan determines which size of Straumann implant fixture is the best fit for your jawbone, and whether a surgical guide (a 3D-printed template that sits over your teeth during surgery to guide the drill precisely) will be used.

If the treatment plan is straightforward, this discussion may happen at the end of your first consultation. For more complex cases — multiple implants, significant bone loss, or implants near the sinus — it may be a separate appointment. Either way, your dentist will explain the plan in plain language, walk through the risks, outline the number of appointments, and confirm the costs in writing before any work begins.

Step 3 — Preliminary work (if needed)

Not everyone needs this step, but some patients require preparation before the implant can be placed.

Tooth extraction

If the damaged tooth is still in place, it will need to be removed. In some cases an implant can be placed immediately into the extraction socket on the same day (an "immediate implant"). More commonly, the socket is allowed to heal for eight to twelve weeks before the implant is placed. Your dentist will advise which approach suits your situation based on the CBCT findings.

Bone grafting

If the CBCT scan shows there is not enough bone to support the implant — either because the bone has resorbed after a tooth was lost, or due to long-term gum disease — a bone graft may be recommended. This involves placing bone graft material (either synthetic, bovine-derived, or from a human tissue bank) into the area and allowing it to integrate with your natural bone. Healing from a bone graft takes three to six months before the site is ready for the implant. Bone grafting adds $500 to $2,000 to the total cost depending on the extent of the graft.

Gum treatment

Active periodontal (gum) disease must be treated and stabilised before implant placement. Placing an implant into infected tissue significantly increases the risk of failure. This may involve a deep clean (scaling and root planing) or, in some cases, minor gum surgery. Treatment is completed and the tissue is assessed as healthy before moving to surgery.

Step 4 — Implant surgery day

This is the appointment most patients are anxious about, and the one that almost everyone says afterwards was much easier than they expected. Here is what happens in the chair, step by step.

Before surgery

You will be asked to eat a light meal two hours before your appointment (an empty stomach can leave you feeling faint). Take any prescribed antibiotics or anti-inflammatory medication as instructed. Wear comfortable clothing. Arrive 10 to 15 minutes early to settle in.

Anaesthetic

Your dentist will apply a topical numbing gel to the gum, then administer local anaesthetic via injection. You will feel a brief pinch, then the area goes completely numb within two to three minutes. If you are particularly anxious, oral sedation is available — this keeps you conscious and relaxed while the anaesthetic takes full effect. The anaesthetic used for implant surgery is the same as for a filling or extraction; there is nothing more aggressive about it.

Accessing the bone

Once the area is fully numb, a small incision is made in the gum tissue to expose the jawbone underneath. If a surgical guide is being used, it is placed over your teeth at this point.

Drilling the implant site

A series of progressively wider precision drills create a channel in the bone to match the diameter and length of the implant. This is done under copious sterile saline irrigation to keep the bone cool (overheating would damage bone cells). You will feel pressure and vibration, but no pain. The drilling sequence takes approximately five to ten minutes per implant.

Placing the implant

The Straumann titanium implant fixture is carefully threaded into the prepared channel. It looks like a small screw, roughly 8 to 13 millimetres long and 3.5 to 5 millimetres wide. Placement takes two to three minutes. You will feel firm pressure as the implant is seated to the correct torque — this is normal and confirms a stable primary fit.

Closing up

A healing cap (a small dome-shaped cover) is placed on top of the implant to protect it during healing. The gum tissue is then sutured closed around the healing cap. Dissolvable sutures are used in most cases, meaning you will not need a separate appointment to have them removed — they dissolve on their own within seven to fourteen days.

Total chair time

For a single implant, expect 45 to 90 minutes from sitting down to standing up. Most of that time is preparation and anaesthetic — the actual implant placement is surprisingly quick.

What does implant surgery actually feel like?

This is the question most people want answered honestly, so here it is.

You will not feel pain during the procedure. The local anaesthetic completely blocks sensation in the area. What you will feel is pressure — from the drill, from the implant being threaded in, and from your dentist's fingers holding your jaw steady. You will hear the drill. You may feel vibration transmitted through the bone. None of this is sharp or stinging. Many patients describe it as similar to feeling someone push firmly against your jaw.

If you have ever had a tooth extracted, implant surgery is generally less uncomfortable than the extraction itself because the bone is being prepared in a controlled, precise way rather than rocked and pulled.

Oral sedation is available for patients who feel anxious. It does not put you to sleep — you remain fully conscious, can respond to instructions, and can breathe normally — but it takes the edge off anxiety and makes the time feel shorter. The effect wears off within five minutes of removing the mask, meaning you can drive yourself home.

The single most common thing patients say in their follow-up appointment is some variation of "I was dreading it and it was completely fine." Dental anxiety around implant surgery is extremely common and completely understandable. The reality of the procedure is almost always gentler than what people imagine beforehand.

Step 5 — Healing period (osseointegration)

After surgery, your jawbone needs time to grow around and bond with the titanium implant surface. This process is called osseointegration, and it is what makes a dental implant so stable — the implant essentially becomes part of your jaw.

With conventional implant surfaces, osseointegration takes six to twelve weeks at minimum, and many clinicians prefer to wait three to six months before loading the implant with a crown. At Pakenham Creek Family Dentist, we use Straumann implants with SLActive surface technology. This chemically active surface promotes faster bone cell attachment and has been shown in clinical studies to achieve reliable osseointegration in as little as three to four weeks. In practice, your dentist will assess healing at your review appointments and determine when the implant is ready to be restored — this is patient-specific and depends on bone quality, location in the mouth, and how well you are healing.

During the healing period, you do not need to attend regular appointments (other than a standard two-week post-surgery check). You eat on the opposite side, keep the area clean with gentle brushing and the prescribed mouth rinse, and let your body do the work.

Step 6 — Abutment placement and digital scan

Once your dentist confirms the implant has integrated successfully — usually by testing its stability and checking a follow-up X-ray — the next step is placing the abutment. The abutment is a small connector piece that screws into the top of the implant and sits just above the gum line. The crown will later attach to this abutment.

Placing the abutment is a short procedure, usually done under local anaesthetic as a precaution, though many patients report feeling very little. If the healing cap needs to be removed and gum tissue reshaped, there may be minor discomfort for a day or two afterwards.

At the same appointment, a digital intraoral scan (or in some cases a traditional impression) is taken of the abutment and surrounding teeth. This scan is sent to the dental laboratory where your custom porcelain crown will be fabricated. The lab typically requires two to three weeks to produce the crown.

This appointment takes 30 to 45 minutes.

Step 7 — Crown fitting

This is the appointment you have been waiting for. The custom-made porcelain crown arrives from the laboratory, and your dentist fits it onto the abutment. The crown is checked for colour match against your natural teeth, bite alignment, and comfort. Minor adjustments to the bite surface are made in the chair if needed.

Once everything sits correctly, the crown is either cemented or screw-retained onto the abutment (your dentist will have determined the retention method during treatment planning). You walk out of the clinic with a fully functional, natural-looking tooth.

This appointment takes 30 to 45 minutes. There is no anaesthetic required unless adjustments are more involved than expected.

Recovery timeline — day by day

Here is what to expect in the days and weeks following implant surgery.

Day 1 (surgery day)

The local anaesthetic wears off two to four hours after surgery. You will feel a dull ache at the implant site — this is normal and manageable with over-the-counter ibuprofen (400mg every six hours) or paracetamol. Some swelling around the jaw and cheek is expected. Apply an ice pack (20 minutes on, 20 minutes off) for the first six hours to reduce swelling. Eat soft, cool foods — yoghurt, soup, scrambled eggs, smoothies. Avoid hot drinks, alcohol, and the area when brushing. Do not spit, suck through a straw, or rinse vigorously — this can dislodge the blood clot forming at the surgery site.

Days 2-3

Swelling typically peaks on day two or three. Bruising may appear on the cheek or jawline — this is harmless and resolves within a week. Pain should be reducing, not increasing. If pain worsens on day three, phone the clinic. Continue soft foods and gentle oral hygiene. You can gently rinse with warm salt water (half a teaspoon of salt in a glass of warm water) from day two onward.

Days 4-7

Swelling starts to resolve. Most patients return to work within two to three days of surgery; by day four you should feel largely normal. You can gradually reintroduce firmer foods but continue to chew on the opposite side. Dissolvable sutures will begin to loosen. Any residual bruising fades to yellow-green. Most patients stop taking pain relief by day four or five.

Week 2-4

The gum tissue around the healing cap is closing and maturing. Your two-week post-operative check confirms healing is on track. By this point, you should feel no pain at the implant site. You can resume normal brushing around the area (gently) and return to your regular diet, still avoiding very hard or crunchy foods directly on the implant side.

Month 2-3

Osseointegration is well underway. Externally, the site looks and feels settled — a small metal healing cap visible at the gum line is the only reminder. No dietary restrictions beyond common sense (do not chew ice or open bottles with your teeth — advice that applies to natural teeth too).

Month 3-6

Osseointegration completes. Your dentist tests the implant's stability and, if integration is confirmed, schedules the abutment and crown appointments. For patients with Straumann SLActive implants and good bone quality, this confirmation can come as early as month three. For cases involving bone grafting or lower bone density, the full six months may be needed.

What can go wrong

Dental implants have a success rate of approximately 95 to 98 per cent over ten years across published clinical studies. That is a very high success rate. However, no surgical procedure is risk-free, and you deserve an honest account of what can go wrong.

Implant failure (non-integration)

In a small percentage of cases (2-5%), the implant does not integrate with the bone. The implant becomes loose and must be removed. This is usually painless — a failed implant simply unscrews. In most cases, the site is allowed to heal for two to three months and a new implant is placed successfully on the second attempt. Risk factors for failure include smoking, uncontrolled diabetes, and insufficient bone density that was not adequately addressed before surgery.

Infection (peri-implantitis)

Bacterial infection around the implant can occur during healing or years later if oral hygiene is not maintained. Early signs include redness, swelling, bleeding on probing, and bad taste around the implant. Caught early, peri-implantitis is treatable with professional cleaning and sometimes antibiotics. Left untreated, it can cause bone loss around the implant and eventual failure. The best prevention is the same as for natural teeth: thorough daily brushing and flossing, and regular professional cleans every six months.

Nerve damage

Implants placed in the lower jaw sit near the inferior alveolar nerve, which provides sensation to the lower lip and chin. If the implant is placed too close to or contacts this nerve, you may experience numbness, tingling, or altered sensation in the lip or chin. This is rare when a CBCT scan and proper treatment planning are used — the nerve's position is clearly visible on the 3D scan and the implant is planned with a safety margin. In the rare event nerve irritation does occur, it usually resolves within weeks to months as the nerve recovers.

Sinus perforation (upper jaw only)

For implants in the upper back jaw, the floor of the maxillary sinus sits close to the tooth roots. If bone height is limited, a sinus lift (a type of bone graft that raises the sinus floor) may be needed before or during implant placement. Unintentional sinus perforation is uncommon with CBCT-guided planning and is manageable if it occurs, but it may extend healing time.

The overarching point: complications are uncommon, and the vast majority are manageable when detected early. Choosing an experienced implant clinician, having a CBCT scan, following post-operative instructions, and attending your review appointments are the four things within your control that most reduce risk.

Costs

Dental implant costs vary depending on the complexity of your case. At Pakenham Creek Family Dentist, indicative pricing for 2026 is:

These figures include the Straumann implant fixture, the abutment, the custom porcelain crown, all surgical appointments, and standard post-operative reviews. Your dentist will provide a written treatment plan with itemised costs before any work begins — there are no surprise fees.

Most private health insurance extras cover a portion of the implant and crown. We process health fund claims on the spot via HICAPS so you only pay the gap. For patients without insurance or with a significant out-of-pocket balance, we offer Afterpay, Zip Pay, SuperCare (access your superannuation for dental treatment), and the National Dental Plan (NDP) for interest-free payment arrangements. Speak with our reception team about which option works best for your situation.

• Single implant and crown (straightforward case): $4,500 to $6,500
• CBCT scan: $150 to $300
• Bone grafting (if required): $500 to $2,000

Aftercare and long-term maintenance

Once your crown is fitted, the implant is treated almost identically to a natural tooth. Brush twice daily, floss or use an interdental brush around the implant daily, and attend professional cleans and check-ups every six months.

Your dentist will monitor the implant at each routine visit — checking the gum tissue, probing depth, and occasionally taking an X-ray to confirm bone levels are stable. Early detection of any issue (usually peri-implantitis from plaque build-up) means early treatment and a far better outcome.

With good oral hygiene and regular professional care, the titanium implant fixture itself can last a lifetime. The porcelain crown may need replacement after 15 to 25 years due to normal wear — the same lifespan as a crown on a natural tooth.

Avoid habits that damage natural teeth: do not chew ice, bite pen caps, open packaging with your teeth, or grind without a night guard. If you clench or grind at night (bruxism), let your dentist know — a custom night guard will protect both the implant crown and your natural teeth.