If you’re missing teeth or are stuck with failing dental work, it’s natural to wonder: What are dental implants made of—and are they strong enough to last?
Here’s the good news: when done right, dental implants don’t just change a smile, they can change lives. But if you’re going to invest in a new smile, you should understand what’s going into your mouth—and why it matters.
Let’s pull back the curtain on the materials, the method, and what makes some implants last while others fail.
What Are Dental Implants Made Of: The Anatomy
While the term ‘dental implant’ refers to the metal post that functions as a root, when we talk about dental implant surgery, it includes the fitting of the entire replacement tooth.
- The tooth implant is the metal post, or screw, typically made from a biocompatible material, like titanium. Like Dr. Patel describes in the video above, titanium bonds really well with bone, so it forms a solid base for the artificial teeth.
- The abutment, a small structure made of titanium, gold, or zirconia, which holds the crown, or the replacement set of teeth to the implant post.
- Zirconia Teeth are attached to the dental implant abutments. Zirconia is the material used in your final, permanent set of teeth. At Nuvia, this is the set you get 24 hours after the dental implants are placed. With traditional methods, you may first have a temporary set of teeth made from acrylic plastics. These often break over the 10+ months that patients have to wear them before getting their permanent teeth.
Dental Implant Materials
The implant itself and the permanent teeth are made from different materials. Both are biocompatible and safe.
Why Titanium Is the Gold Standard for Dental Implants
Titanium has been used in medicine and dentistry for over 50 years—and for good reason. It’s incredibly strong, lightweight, and biocompatible, which means your body naturally accepts it.
That’s what makes it so effective for full mouth restorations. Once the implant is placed, the bone grows around it, locking it in place like your natural tooth once was.
Titanium implants in large studies have shown a 93.3%-98% success rate. From 2022-2024, Nuvia’s success rate for titanium implants (healing with permanent teeth) was 99.13%.
Titanium is the preferred metal for dental implants for a number of reasons. The first is that it does not irritate the surrounding tissue when it is embedded in the jawbone. As a result, patients are unlikely to experience inflammation or related pain after they heal from their surgery.
In addition, it’s not likely that the body will reject titanium dental implants, making it very likely that the procedure will succeed over the long-term. The second reason titanium is the preferred metal for dental implants is because it allows for the process of osseointegration.
Not only is titanium a safe material for dental implants, at Nuvia, every surgery is performed by an oral & maxillofacial surgeon with years of hospital-based training. No dentists who have only taken a weekend course on dental implants here (they actually exist!).
Why Zirconia Teeth?
Zirconia is an incredibly durable ceramic that feels and functions like real teeth. This durability is what allows the zirconia teeth to act like a rigid splint for healing dental implants with Nuvia’s permanent teeth in 24 hours. Think of the teeth like a cast for the implants.
The temporary teeth that patients are given with a traditional approach do not provide the same strong splint that permanent teeth do. Because they are made of a more flexible material (acrylic) and are more prone to breaking, they do not create as ideal an environment for healing.
Are Dental Implant Materials Safe?
The short answer is yes. Although 10-15% of the population have a metal allergy, only .6% of the population show signs of irritation from titanium. This is one reason it is so widely used in medical devices.
However, it is still important to double check that your dental implant provider uses implants made from pure grade four medical titanium.
Why Dental Implants In the First Place?
Dental implants, which provide a stable base for replacement teeth, offer patients a safe and effective way to restore their facial features and regain their beautiful smiles.
Dental implants, compared to other solutions, like dentures, replace missing teeth permanently. You won’t have to deal with messy adhesives, gums being rubbed and causing sores, or fake teeth that get in the way of speaking or eating.
Full mouth dental implants make it possible to eat whatever you’d like without pain, they restore oral health, and they give you back your smile.
Many providers offer dental implants using the same methods that were used 20 years ago. You may have heard this be called “Teeth-in-a-Day”®. However, after two decades, new research has made it possible for patients to get permanent teeth in 24 hours.
How it Works
After taking the 60-second quiz to see if you may be a candidate for dental implants, you’ll have a consultation where you’ll get a quick scan to check your bone levels.
Next, you get to pick the shape and color of your new teeth.
Then you’ll set a day for the procedure. During the procedure you’ll have an oral & maxillofacial surgeon placing your titanium implants while a CRNA keeps you comfortably asleep. As soon as the implants are placed, the in-house lab will get started on your new teeth.
Just 24 hours later, you’ll return and be given your permanent set of zirconia teeth.
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