Something Is Wrong With My Implant

My implant feels loose: what does it mean?

First you need to work out what is actually moving, because the three possibilities lead to very different outcomes

Most patients who feel movement in an implant fear the worst, yet what is moving is often not the implant itself. It may be the tooth on top, the screw holding it or part of the bridge. This distinction matters a great deal: one is a procedure of a few minutes, the other is the loss of the implant. On this page we explain how the distinction is made, when you need to be seen at the clinic the same day and what you should not do in the meantime.

Short answer

Three different things can move, and each means something different. If the tooth or bridge on top is moving, the abutment screw has usually come loose; this can be put right. If the abutment has broken, that part has to be replaced. If the implant itself is moving in the bone, it has lost its anchorage and cannot be saved; it has to be removed. You cannot tell which it is on your own: it takes an examination and an X-ray.

Most common cause: The abutment screw holding the bridgework coming loose
Most serious possibility: The implant losing its anchorage in the bone
What not to do: Wiggle it with your tongue or fingers, or tighten it yourself
Urgency: Book without delay; the same day if there is pain and inflammation

Medically reviewed by Bilge Ilgın, Dentist · ImplantologyLast reviewed 2026-09-06

What might be moving

Implant treatment is not made up of a single piece. There is the body that goes into the bone, in most systems an abutment that sits on top of it, and then the tooth or bridge you can see at the very top. In conventional systems, these parts are held together with a small screw. The movement you feel can come from any link in this chain, and when you look in your mouth, they all look the same.

The most common situation is a loose abutment screw. Under a load repeated thousands of times as you chew, the screw can gradually work loose, especially if one point touches before the others when you bite, or if you grind your teeth at night (bruxism). In this case the implant is perfectly secure; what is moving is the part on top of it. Seen in time, the fix is a short procedure: the screw is taken out, cleaned and tightened again to the correct torque.

The second possibility is that the screw or the abutment has broken. When a loose screw goes on being used without being tightened, the load it should be carrying falls directly on the screw itself, and the screw fatigues. The broken piece can stay inside the implant, and removing it takes special instruments. This is work that would never have been needed if the problem had been dealt with while the screw was only loose.

The third and most serious possibility is that the implant has lost its anchorage in the bone. In this case what is moving is no longer the part on top but the body itself. An implant that has lost its anchorage cannot be won back with treatment; tightening, cleaning or antibiotics do not change the picture. The right decision is to remove the implant, wait for the area to heal and draw up the plan again.

You cannot tell these three apart on your own, and you should not try to. Testing it by wiggling it with your finger or tongue can break a loose screw or put further strain on the tissue around an implant that is already borderline. The distinction is made at the clinic: the bridgework is removed so that each implant can be assessed on its own, and the bone level is checked on an X-ray.

With one-piece, or monoblock, designs the picture is slightly different. In these systems the body and the top part are the same piece, so there is no abutment screw that can come loose. The movement you feel therefore comes either from where the bridgework attaches to the implant or directly from the implant itself. This is still worked out at an examination, but the list of possibilities is shorter.

Which situations can be put right and which cannot

The distinction below is the framework for the assessment made at the clinic. The definitive answer comes after the examination and the X-ray.

The tooth can be saved

If the abutment screw has come looseThe implant is secure; what moves is the bridgework. The screw is taken out, cleaned and tightened again to the torque set by the manufacturer. The bite is checked in the same session too, because the cause of the loosening is usually not the screw itself but an uneven load on it.
If the screw has broken but the implant is soundThe broken piece is removed with special instruments and a new one is fitted. The procedure takes longer than dealing with a loose screw, but the implant is saved. That is why it matters not to leave a loose screw waiting.
If part of the bridge has brokenBroken bridgework does not necessarily involve the load-bearing structure underneath. It can be repaired or replaced; but a repair made without finding out why the break happened brings the same break back.
If the movement has only just startedMovement noticed early is almost always the easiest situation to resolve. A loose screw seen within a few days is dealt with in a short procedure; a loose screw that is chewed on for months turns into a broken part and sometimes the loss of the implant.

Saving it is unlikely to hold

If the implant itself is movingAn implant that has lost its anchorage cannot be won back. Cleaning, medication or retightening do not change the picture. What needs to be done is to remove the implant and wait for the area to heal.
If there is advanced bone loss around itIf the X-ray shows that most of the bone around the implant has been lost, repairing the bridgework does no more than put the problem off. The conversation here is not about repair but about drawing up the plan again.
If there is pain and inflammation as wellIf the movement comes with pain, swelling or pus from the gum pocket, the problem is not only mechanical. This needs to be assessed the same day, and the infection has to be brought under control first.
If the same screw keeps coming looseA screw that comes loose more than once a year is not a maintenance job but a load distribution problem. Tightening it and sending you on your way silences the symptom; the cause needs to be looked for in the bite or in a load-bearing structure that is not strong enough.

What is done at the clinic

The order matters: first the source of the movement is identified, then treatment is discussed. Doing it the other way round leads to the wrong procedure.

1
Removing the bridgework
In a screw-retained system, the bridge or tooth is taken off so the implant itself can be assessed directly. Without this step it is not possible to identify the source of the movement; seen from above, all three situations look the same.
2
Testing each implant on its own
Once the bridgework is off, each implant is checked for movement in the bone. If there is no movement, the problem is in the bridgework, and that means it can be put right.
3
Checking the bone level on an X-ray
The image shows how much bone is left around the implant. Where possible, it is compared with an X-ray taken straight after treatment; how quickly things have changed is the key piece of information for the decision.
4
Measuring the bite
The cause of the loosening is often not the screw but the load on it. Points that touch first when you bite are found and adjusted. If this step is skipped, the same screw comes loose again within a few months.
5
Replacing the part or retightening
The screw is cleaned and tightened to the correct torque; if it has broken, it is removed and a new one is fitted. Tightening is done not by hand but with a torque-controlled instrument: overtightening causes as many problems as undertightening.
6
Drawing up a new plan if the implant cannot be saved
If removal is needed, the area is left to heal and the remaining bone is assessed. Where and how the new implant will sit is decided after that assessment.

The way forward if the implant is lost

Losing an implant does not mean the treatment is over. These are the options discussed at that point.

A new implant in the same area

Once the area has healed, a new implant can be placed in most cases. The remaining bone decides the plan: if there is enough, the plan stays largely the same; if not, taking the anchorage from the deep layer that does not shrink comes into consideration.

Carrying the bridge on the remaining implants

In a plan based on load sharing, losing a single implant does not put the whole structure out of action. If the remaining supports are enough, the bridge can be adapted and kept in use. This is the quiet advantage of plans built on a larger number of implants.

Replanning the load-bearing structure

If the loss was caused not by that one implant but by the load distribution, simply replacing that implant produces the same result. In this situation, the bridge design and the number of implants are reviewed together.

Waiting with a temporary solution

While the area heals, you can manage with a temporary prosthesis. This temporary period is not a treatment but time set aside for the area to rest; the next plan becomes clear during it.

What not to do in the meantime

These are things people do with good intentions that make the situation worse. All of them are common in practice.

Checking it by wiggling it with your tongue or fingers

Every check puts a little more strain on a connection that is already borderline. A loose screw can break this way, and the tissue around an implant with reduced anchorage comes under even more strain. If you have noticed the movement, there is no need to keep testing it.

Trying to tighten it yourself

Implant screws are tightened to a specific torque, and that value varies by manufacturer. A screw tightened by hand either ends up not tight enough or is overtightened and breaks. Either way, it becomes a problem that is hard to undo later.

Carrying on chewing on that side

With a loose connection, the load falls directly on the screw. Chewing the same way for a few more days can turn a simple tightening job into removing a broken part. Rest that side until your appointment.

Putting it off because it does not hurt

Because an implant has no nerve of its own, the problem can progress without pain. No pain does not mean the movement is unimportant; on the contrary, the implant problems that progress most quietly are the ones noticed latest.

After the procedure

What happens next depends on the procedure carried out; what they all have in common is that a repair that does not correct the cause does not last.

If the screw was tightened
You can use it normally again the same day. The area may be slightly tender for the first few days. If the bite was also adjusted, biting may feel different for a day or two; this is to be expected.
If a part was replaced
A check-up is done within a few weeks of the replacement, and the torque of the screw is checked again. This check-up is the only way to see whether the same problem is coming back.
If the implant was removed
The area takes weeks to heal. During this time you manage with a temporary solution, and how the bone is healing is monitored. The new plan is drawn up once healing is complete.
Follow-up afterwards
In a system where a screw has already come loose once, check-ups are scheduled more often. The aim is to catch the same problem early, because a screw that comes loose a second time is often a sign of a bigger problem.

Message us right away if

You first notice the movement. There is nothing to be gained by waiting. A loose screw seen early is dealt with in a short procedure; the same loose screw left for months turns into a broken part and sometimes the loss of the implant.
The movement comes with pain or swelling. This is not only a mechanical problem. Pain, swelling or pus from the gum pocket should be assessed the same day; the infection has to be brought under control first.
A part is moving in your mouth or has come out. Keep the part that came out and take care not to swallow it. When you bring it to the clinic, being able to see which part it is speeds up the procedure straight away.
You have a fever or spreading swelling. This shows that things have gone beyond a mechanical problem. Call your clinic the same day; if you are struggling to swallow or breathe, go straight to A&E.

What determines the cost

The same symptom can correspond to very different procedures, from a quick tightening to removing the implant and planning again. These are the deciding items:

Which part the problem is in: Tightening a screw, replacing a part, repairing the bridgework and removing an implant are different procedures. Which one it is becomes clear after the examination and X-ray; any figure given before that is an estimate.
Availability of parts: If it is known which system was used, spare parts can be obtained quickly. If the system is unknown or has been withdrawn from the market, the same procedure takes longer and costs more.
Correcting the bite: If the cause is an uneven load, adjusting the bite is part of the job. A cheap repair that skips this brings the same problem back a few months later.
A new plan if the implant was lost: Removal, the healing period and a new implant are separate items. This scenario costs many times more than a problem resolved by acting early.

Frequently asked questions

My implant feels loose. Am I definitely going to lose it?

No. The most common cause of the movement you feel is not the implant itself but a loose abutment screw on top, and that can be put right. The situation in which the implant is lost is when the implant body itself moves in the bone. Telling the two apart requires removing the bridgework and taking an X-ray.

Can I tighten the loose screw at home?

No. Implant screws are tightened to a specific torque, and that value varies by system. A screw tightened by hand either ends up not tight enough or breaks. Removing a broken screw from inside an implant is a much harder job than tightening a loose one.

It does not hurt. Do I need to hurry?

Yes. Because an implant has no nerve of its own, problems can progress without pain. Booking an appointment on the day you notice the movement keeps the job to a short procedure in most cases; waiting makes it bigger.

Why does the same screw keep coming loose?

Screw loosening that keeps coming back is usually a problem not with the screw but with the load on it. The things to consider are a point that touches first when you bite, grinding your teeth at night, or a load-bearing structure that is not strong enough. Tightening it and sending you on your way silences the symptom but does not solve the cause.

If the loose implant is removed, can a new one be placed?

In most cases, yes. The area is left to heal, the remaining bone is assessed and the position of the new implant is decided accordingly. If the bone loss is advanced, taking the anchorage from the deep layer that does not shrink comes into consideration.

Will my whole bridge need replacing?

Not necessarily. If the problem is in a single connection, only that part is dealt with. However, if the break or the loosening is caused by the way the load-bearing structure distributes the load, replacing only the part brings the same result back a few months later.

I had it done recently and it started moving within a few weeks. Is that normal?

It is not normal, and it is not something to wait on. Movement that appears early on can be related either to the screw or to the anchorage, and telling which is urgent. Call the clinic that did the treatment the same day; this also has a direct bearing on your guarantee.

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