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What is All on 4 and how does it work?

November 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

In the past, the process of getting dental implants fitted could be a long, with several appointments carried out over a long time span. When using traditional dental implants it can take months for the implants to properly fuse with the jawbone, before the crown, bridge or denture restoration are even fitted. However, a newly developed system called All on 4 can cut down the time spent in the dentist’s chair dramatically, by using compact implants, fitted at a 45 degree angle, which are placed along with the restoration in just one sitting. Even better, patients who have lost all their teeth can replace a full arch with All on 4 implants, for both top and bottom jaws.

Having the implants fitted into the jawbone is an invasive and uncomfortable procedure, so anything that cuts down the number of incisions needed is better for the patient and the dentist. Once X-rays and moulds have been taken and false teeth have been chosen, they are manufactured and returned to the clinic ready to be fitted during your next appointment.

Of course, the patient will have to return for appointments to ensure that the implants have healed correctly, as well as their usual six-monthly check-ups, but this will keep you and your dental implants in the best of health.

All on 4 implants use only four implant screws to secure an entire set of false teeth. This is possible due to the special 45-degree alignment of the implants, which allows them to anchor a larger number of teeth, rather than using one implant and one painful incision per tooth. One of the best things about All on 4 is that there isn’t any need to wait for all the implant incisions to heal before the false teeth are secured. As soon as the dental implants are in place, the false teeth are fitted to the screws using dental bridges and the patient can leave the clinic with their new smile in place. Even patients with weak jawbones can be suitable for the All on 4 treatment, as the screws are fitted to the front of the jaw where the bone tends to be thicker, meaning that you are less likely to need a bone graft before getting the dental implants and false teeth fitted.

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Are Dental Implants permanent?

September 14, 2009 By 2 Comments

The short answer to this is yes, which is why they provide such a wonderful alternative to the likes of dentures. Whereas dentures need to be messily fixed in place, and taken out each night so they can be cleaned, dental implants are permanently screwed into your mouth and the implant part itself actually fuses with the bone at the jaw in order to ensure that your new, artificial teeth are anchored in place just as securely as the rest of your teeth.

This does, for some people, raise the concern that, if they get a couple of teeth implanted, then all their other teeth fall out naturally, that they may be left with only the teeth which have been implanted and no others. However, implanted teeth can actually protect other teeth from damage by filling in the gaps left by lost teeth and also by facilitating bone growth (for an explanation on this please refer back to one of the other articles).

So, whilst you may lose more teeth as you get older, you can always have more dental implants fitted in the Manchester or London clinics; dental implants are the only way to put a smile on your face permanently.

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Is it possible to have repeat dental implant procedures over the course of a lifetime?

September 3, 2009 By Leave a Comment

We might need one dental implant putting in because of a freak accident or because we didn’t really take care of our gums in the way we should when we were younger. Yet, as we get older, the worrying fact that we may start to lose more and more of our smile as a natural result of the ageing process may becomes a very real part of our lives. People don’t want to simply get one dental implant and then lose all their other teeth, only to find out they can’t have the procedure again.

Well, you needn’t worry; over the course of you lifetime, and provided you have the money to pay for the operations, you can keep getting implants to suit the changing state of your smile as you age. There may ultimately come a time where you have no teeth left and, rather than opt for fiddly dentures, you decide that having a complete set of implants fitted is the best way to allow you to get on with your life. If an implant becomes damaged over time then it can be replaced as well!

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Dental Implants – Who isn’t suitable for dental implants?

August 28, 2009 By Leave a Comment

This might well burst some people’s bubbles; you may have dreamed of dental implants for years; you’ve probably already booked your train ticket to London or your flight to Poland and now we are about to reveal that you can’t actually have them. Well actually, we are probably not, as there are very few people who are generally not suitable for dental implants and many of them are pretty obvious.

You should not consider dental implants for young children who feel self-conscious during the transition from milk teeth to adult teeth. Implants are a permanent solution and thus this would damage the long-term health of your children’s mouth. Also, people with very bad gums, perhaps diseased gums, who have lost a tooth due to this illness, should be aware that dental implants are not a solution to the problem. They provide an aesthetic façade but the root of the gum degradation needs to be tackled in order to keep hold of the teeth which remain. You should also discuss what specific implants are made of with your dentist to make sure you aren’t allergic to anything.

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