Older adults who have lived with missing teeth for years often arrive at Innova Dental Implant Institute uncertain about whether the passage of time has removed implants as a treatment option. The practice is addressing this question directly, reporting that the length of time a patient has lived without teeth does not determine eligibility on its own. According to Innova, the surgical team evaluates each patient's current bone condition and overall health to determine what treatment is possible and what preparatory steps may be needed.
"What I tell patients is that the duration of tooth loss matters less than what the bone looks like right now," said Dr. Dexter Mattox, DMD, MD, board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Innova Dental Implant Institute. "We have worked with patients in their 80s and 90s who had been missing teeth for decades, and the path forward depends on what the 3D imaging shows us about their current bone structure, not on a timeline."
Innova reports that its evaluation process centers on CBCT imaging, which produces a 3D picture of the patient's jaw before any planning begins. The surgical team uses this data to assess bone volume at each potential implant site and identify what preparatory work the case may require. Where bone loss has advanced to a point where it cannot support implant placement directly, the practice performs bone grafting to build up the site before the implant procedure. For patients who need full-arch tooth replacement, Innova's InnovaSmile procedure positions implants based on the bone anatomy that exists rather than requiring a specific bone volume throughout the jaw.
Innova further notes that older adults who have delayed seeking treatment due to cost concerns or uncertainty about whether they qualify still present for evaluation at the practice. The surgical team reviews each case based on the patient's current clinical picture. Additional information on Innova's approach to implant evaluation for older adults is available at https://innovaimplants.com/dental-implants-for-seniors/