Damascus-SANA

Syria is a destination for those looking for the best features of dental implants in terms of quality and cost, due to the expertise and high technologies it possesses in this field.

The Dental Implant Center at Damascus University, which was created twenty years ago, formed the first nucleus of implant surgery in Syria, which witnessed a remarkable development to become one of the distinguished medical surgeries that achieved a high success rate worldwide.

Dental Implants in Syria

The head of the dental implantology department at the National Center for Medical Specializations (Syrian Board) and a specialist in oral and maxillofacial surgery and dental and bone implants, Dr. Ghassan Basit, explained in a statement to SANA correspondent that the success rate of dental implants in Syria reached 95 percent, which is close to the global rates of 97 percent.

The Dental Implant Center at the University of Damascus is affiliated with the Department of Maxillofacial Surgery at the Faculty of Dentistry, and it carries out multiple researches in gum treatment in addition to specialized training courses for doctors from various public hospitals, explaining that dental implants are taught within the college's curricula, and it has become a specialty taught for four years after graduation after which the doctor is granted a certificate from the National Center for Medical Specializations (Syrian Board).

Dr. Basit pointed out that the Department of Dental Implantology was established at the National Center for Medical Specializations (Syrian Board) for dental medical specialties in 2015, which includes four specialties in addition to dental implants, namely orthodontics, treatment and cosmetology to train dentists in this field, and training courses are held in a number of government hospitals.

The National Center for Medical Specializations (Syrian Board) in addition to the Department of Dental Implantology, according to Dr. Basit, includes specializations in the departments of cosmetology, orthodontics and endodontics, stressing that this specialization has witnessed a great development in Syria.

Dr. Basit pointed out that the dental implant service is provided free of charge or at cost to purchase the implant for patients registered at the Damascus University Center and the Syrian Board Center, and a number of patients benefit from it during the training courses held in a number of hospitals.

Dr. Basit recalls that he was part of the medical team from the university, which followed the first specialized course in 1996 held in cooperation with the Lebanese University for a whole year, where he met the Swedish professor (Ingvar Branemark), who discovered the role of titanium in dental implants, explaining that this surgery has become in Syria one of the first advanced and successful surgeries, with the presence of more than forty medical companies specialized in types of dental implants.

In order to regulate the specialization of dental implants, especially with the spread of a number of centers, Dr. Basit pointed out that the Ministry of Health has identified specialists in oral and maxillofacial surgery, peridental histology (gums) and dental implants to perform this type of surgery.

Read also: At a cost of more than one billion liras... The first digital dental laboratory at Damascus University

Why choose dental implants in Syria?

Despite the high costs of this type of implantation, it is still less expensive in Syria compared to neighboring countries, according to a member of the Dental Syndicate, Dr. Aziz Mawas, in addition to the quality of the medical materials used and the availability of a large number of centers and clinics specialized in this, noting that these features encouraged the entry of dental implants within medical tourism in Syria.

Mawas pointed out that there is more than one technique and type related to the implant in the world, and determining the best depends on the extent to which it meets the patient's condition and the surgical and compensatory work, indicating that the implant process for one typical implant takes 15 minutes, while in the case of implantation from the beginning of the surgical procedure, until the end of compensation above the implant, it needs from 3 to 6 months.

Tips and information about dental implants

On the success of dental implant surgery, Dr. Mawas indicated that it is linked to the doctor and the patient together, pointing out that the doctor must be highly competent and experienced in the field of dental implants, and take into account the indications of this surgery and its antibiotics, in addition to full knowledgeof the anatomical aspects, and a good planning for the prosthetic stage after implantation.

As for the patient, Mawas pointed out the need to adhere to postoperative instructions, oral hygiene and stay away from unhealthy habits.

Regarding the alternatives to the transplant process, Mawas indicated that dental bridges can be used (fixed compensation) and mobile compensation, explaining that after denying the patient's implant contraindications, there is no case in which implantation is not possible, but the difficulties of surgery vary according to the case, as the lack of sufficient bone in some cases requires bone implantation before or with dental implantation.

Dr. Mawas believes that this type of surgery has witnessed development in Syria since 2000 and is still continuing, despite the difficulties witnessed by the health sector as a result of the conditions of the terrorist war on Syria and the unjust economic blockade on it.

When did dental implants appear around the world?

A mechanism was discovered to compensate for missing teeth in the fifties of the last century by the Swedish professor (Ingvar Branemark), who discovered the role of titanium in this, and succeeded in 1965 to implant replacement teeth for the first time, after which research and operations continued and dental implants witnessed great developments.

The dental implant process is done by replacing the roots of damaged or missing teeth with metal screw-like supports of titanium, and replacing them with a crown similar to a natural tooth, a procedure that combines the competencies of surgery, gums and compensation and allows replacing the missing tooth without the need to install a bridge or change in the shape of the teeth adjacent to the location of the missing teeth.

Bushra Barhoum

Follow SANA News on Telegram https://t.me/SyrianArabNewsAgency