What are the Various Parts of a Dental Implant?

Maureen asks:
What is an implant abutment? What are the healing caps? Is the abutment the same thing as the crown?

Answered by: Dr. Michael Tischler

Woodstock, NY

Dear Maureen,

There are 3 parts to a dental implant. First is the implant body itself that inserts into the bone.

Once the implant is placed into the bone, a choice has to be made if the implant body is going to be placed under the gum to allow it to heal for 3-5 months or is it going to be used right away. Letting the implant heal under the gum is somewhat more predictable with regards to successful healing of the implant, although the literature also supports utilizing dental implants immediately in certain circumstances.

If an implant is placed under the gum then once it is uncovered a healing cap is placed on the implant to keep the gum open after uncovery. This is then allowed to heal for a few weeks before impressions are taken.

After impressions are taken, then the implant abutment is placed which replaces the cover screw. The implant abutment is what attaches a crown to the implant body.