I’m trying to decide between regular implant overdentures or all-on-four dental implants. Is there a benefit to one over the other?
Danny
Dear Danny,
Some of that depends on the bone structure you have left in your jawbone. Dental implants require bone support in order to keep them secure. If you’ve been without teeth for any length of time, it is possible you don’t have enough bone structure for traditional dental implants. Though, there is a bone grafting procedure you can have done to build that necessary bone back up.
Make certain your dentist does adequate diagnostics to determine the viability of the bone you have. Ideally, you will want a CT scan because you want 3-dimensional images. This will make certain the dentist doesn’t hit any nerves or perforate your sinus cavity.
All-on-4 Versus Traditional Implants
The all-on-4 procedure was developed to give patients, who haven’t lost too much bone, dental implants without the bone grafting procedure. It has to do with the angles in which the implants are placed. The one downside of it is that if one part of the unit fails the entire unit has to be replaced. This is not an issue with traditional dental implants.
If you have plenty of bone, there is no need for the all-on-4 procedure.
If you have some bone loss, then you can get the all-on-4 or do bone grafting and get traditional implant supported dentures.
However, if you are missing a significant amount of bone structure, then you will have to have bone grafting done if you want dental implants.
Make Certain Your Dentist is Qualified
The key to any successful dental implant procedure is the training and skill of the dentist. This is an advanced procedure and you will need a dentist who has invested in post-doctoral training. Dental school alone is not enough.
I hope this helps.
This blog is brought to you by Des Moines Dentist Dr. Phelan Thomas.