Implantology
Dr. Daniel Brooks
·
7 min
·
July 2026
In this article
What bone actually does Four distances from the loss The honest math of waiting What to do tonight
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A 20-second scan answers this for your specific mouth, free on a first visit.
~25%
of ridge width lost in the first year, the fast phase
20 sec
of scanning to know exactly where you stand
1 in 20
cases where the answer is a different plan, not too late
Nobody asks it on the first visit. It arrives around minute twenty, once the scan is on the screen and the coffee has done its work: is it too late for me?
Here is what twelve years of imaging says. Bone does recede after a tooth is lost, and the first year matters most. But in four real cases below, spanning two months to twelve years of waiting, only one needed anything beyond a standard graft.
The honest summary: later is harder, rarely impossible, and always cheaper than the version your imagination has been quoting you at 2am.
Doctor’s note
The twelve-year case was easier than the six-year one. Time raises the odds of complexity; it does not schedule it. The scan, not the calendar, gets the final word.
Questions this article did not cover? The chair answers better than the comments.
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