What are dental implants?
Dental implants are artificial roots which support and retain prosthetic teeth. They are the most consistent and lasting way to replace missing tooth.
Dental Implant Procedure
A minor surgery is required to place a dental implant, and once it is in place, a crown is attached to it in order to provide a highly realistic-looking and functional prosthetic tooth.
There are various protocols used for implant dentistry, depending on the case. These are the most common methods we use at Smile Studio: .
One-Stage Dental Implants
This method is highly successful if used on the right type of case. It depends on finding the ideal conditions after a thorough diagnosis. One-stage dental implants tend to be most successful on front teeth. Additionally, they are great for complete edentulous jaws, which can take four to six implants and restored immediately.
Two-Stage Dental Implants
At Smile Studio, we only use the Two-Stage Dental Implant method. On the first stage, we place the dental implants, and wait for the healing period where the body is able to create a strong junction between the titanium dental implants and the bone structure, resulting in a long-lasting dental restoration. This natural process is called Osseo integration.
On the second stage, after the Osseo integration has occurred, we place the crown. This is important because if you place the crown immediately after the surgery, chances are that the pressure of your bite might be in the abutment crown or new prosthetic tooth, preventing the Osseo integration of the dental implant and resulting in its loss.
Types of Dental Implants
There are also different types of dental implants depending on the needs of each patient, as follows: .
All on two dental implants (Removable denture)
This type of implants can be used to replace a whole set of teeth or arch (top and bottom). This means a replacement of 14 teeth for each arch. In this case, the patient will need at least two dental implants to attach two dentures into those implants.
This option can be used to avoid planked or removable dentures, but even though is a better option, is not the most comfortable one.
At Smile Studio we commonly recommend and use only the all on 4 or all on 6 dental implants.
All on 4 dental implants
The all-on-4 concept comes from placing only 4 implants that will support a whole denture (bridge). These four dental implants act like pillars to the denture that supports the prosthetic teeth. This denture is formed by a metal frame called hybrid denture, and the teeth, which are made with an acrylic material. We insert each tooth individually on the metal frame and we add the fake gum. This way when you smile it will look as if it was part of your natural bone structure.
All on 6 dental implants
The difference between the all-on-4 implants and this one is the number of implants that are used. All-on-6 has six implants. The decision on which method to use depends on the clinical opinion of the dental practice.
At Smile Studio, we recommend the All-on-6 procedure because we believe that it provides better strength and stability, especially when you chew or bite. Having 6 dental implants allow dispersing the biting pressure evenly onto your implants and through the jaw, resulting in a significant amount of added strength, stability and long lasting benefit.
Also esthetically, the all-on-6 dental implant looks more natural, because we use porcelain to make the teeth, which is the material that looks more similar to your natural teeth.
Additionally, your teeth forms part of the metal frame, meaning each teeth will have metal in the bottom and porcelain on top. This is the closest to having natural teeth that a patient might get, and they are artistically custom elaborated by the lab technician so they will fit perfectly to your individual requirements.
Who can be a candidate for an all-on-4 and all-on-6 dental implants?
• Patients who have missing teeth or teeth in bad shape, and need to restore them fully on either the lower or the upper arch or on both al the same time.
• Patients who have enough bone to get the implants. If not, first they will have to get a bone graft done.
• Patients that have gotten their teeth extracted must wait 3-4 months before placing the implants. The bone and gums must heal before placing an implant.
• If all the conditions are ideal, patients can get teeth extracted, bone grafts done and implants placed during the same surgery.
We use only the finest materials available. That’s why we offer a lifetime guarantee on all of our dental implants!