The Zygomatic Implant Procedure, Step by Step

What makes this operation different

The full pathway, stage by stage

Eight stages, spread across roughly six months and two visits. Durations below are indicative and not yet confirmed in writing by the clinic.

1. Stage 1

   Remote assessment and a written plan

   You send whatever imaging you already have — usually a panoramic X-ray, sometimes an earlier CBCT — with a medical history and current medication list. A surgeon reviews it and you receive a preliminary opinion, a proposed implant configuration and a written quote. This stage is remote and costs nothing at most clinics, and it remains a preliminary opinion only.

2. Stage 2

   In-person consultation and 3D planning

   On arrival, a fresh CBCT is taken and the plan is confirmed or revised. Implant positions, lengths and angles are planned on the 3D data set, and the provisional bridge is designed alongside them. Blood tests and an anaesthetic review normally happen here too. Occasionally the scan shows something the flat X-ray hid and the plan changes — for example from a hybrid case to quad zygomatic implants. Ask how that would be handled, and priced, before you travel.

3. Stage 3

   Anaesthesia and preparation

   Surgery can be carried out under local anaesthetic, under sedation, or under general anaesthesia. Which one is used is decided by you and your surgeon together, based on your health and the case. If sedation or general anaesthesia is planned you will be asked to fast beforehand, usually from midnight; under local anaesthetic no fasting is needed and the appointment follows the same protocol as ordinary dental treatment. Any remaining upper teeth that cannot be saved are extracted at the start of the same operation, so that extraction, implant placement and the provisional bridge all happen in one sitting.

4. Stage 4

   Placing the implants — usually 2 to 4 hours

   The surgeon raises the gum to expose the front and side of the upper jaw, identifies the base of the cheekbone, and prepares the channel for each implant under direct vision. Each implant is inserted so that its tip engages dense cheekbone and its head emerges at the right position on the ridge for the bridge. In a hybrid case, standard implants are placed at the front in the same session. Most cases take around two to four hours; quad zygoma cases sit at the longer end.

5. Stage 5

   Fixed provisional bridge within 24 to 72 hours

   Because cheekbone anchorage is immediately stable in most cases, the implants can usually be loaded straight away. An impression or digital scan is taken, and a fixed provisional bridge — commonly an acrylic and titanium hybrid — is screwed onto the implants within 24 to 72 hours. This is what people mean by "teeth in a day": fixed, not removable, but temporary.

6. Stage 6

   Discharge checks before you fly home

   The first visit is typically five to seven days in total. Before discharge the bite is adjusted, hygiene around the new bridge is taught, and you are given written aftercare, medication and a direct contact route. Make sure you know exactly who to call, and how, once you are back in the UK.

7. Stage 7

   Osseointegration — usually 4 to 6 months

   The bone remodels around each implant while you wear the provisional bridge and eat a softer diet. Follow-up during this phase is normally remote if you were treated abroad. Nobody can promise a healing time: smoking, diabetes, medication and bone quality all change it, and some cases are reviewed for longer.

8. Stage 8

   Second visit for the final zirconia bridge

   A second trip of roughly five to seven days covers final impressions, a try-in, and delivery of the definitive bridge — usually monolithic zirconia, which is stronger and more stable in colour than the provisional. The bite is refined over a few appointments rather than one, and a maintenance and review schedule is agreed.

Where the implant actually sits

A standard implant stays within the jawbone. A zygomatic implant begins on the jaw ridge and travels up into the cheekbone, which is why it works when the jaw itself is too thin to hold anything.

How the implant relates to your sinus

General anaesthesia or deep sedation?

Both are used. Which one you are offered depends on the length of the case, your medical history and the anaesthetist's assessment — not on cost. Ask which is planned for you, and why.

How many implants does a case need?

The count depends on how much usable bone remains at the front of the upper jaw. It is decided from the CBCT, not from a price list.

Configurations reflect indicative clinic practice; your own plan comes from your CBCT. Cost differences between configurations are set out in the cost guide.

The questions people actually ask before the day

Practical detail that tends to get skipped in consultations because it feels too small to ask about.

Before your surgery date

Sorting these out in advance removes most of the avoidable stress, particularly if you are travelling for treatment.

How the angle is decided before surgery

Nothing about the trajectory is improvised in theatre. It is simulated on your CT beforehand so the path clears the eye socket, stays outside the sinus wall and lands in the body of the cheekbone.

What good planning looks like from your side

Zygomatic implant surgery: frequently asked questions