We will be closed on 25th and 26th of November in observance of Thanksgiving

The Many Benefits of All-on-4 Dental Implants Versus Dentures

The Many Benefits of All-on-4 Dental Implants Versus Dentures

Nov 28, 2019

For many years, your only choices for tooth loss were doing without or having a custom denture or bridge made to replace missing teeth. This changed with the development of dental implants. Instead of a replacement system that sits over the gum and jaw, implants place an artificial tooth root directly into the bone of the jaw, providing the strongest and most secure alternative to natural teeth.

Book today for Your Dental Implants Treatments!

When replacing all your teeth, two key options include an implant system called All-On-Four®️ as well as conventional denture plates. For most patients, the All-On-Four option is the way to go. Here’s why.

The benefits of dental implants

Implants have many benefits by their very nature and are now considered the standard of care for patients who require tooth replacement, whether a single tooth, several, or a complete set. Perhaps the most obvious advantage over dentures is that implants are permanent.

There’s no embarrassment stemming from removable appliances that may slip during eating or speech. However, that’s only the beginning of the advantages that implants offer. Other benefits include:

  • Less impact on other teeth, which may be reduced or used as anchors for dental appliances
  • Potentially longer life than removable dentures
  • Easier to maintain, requiring the same hygiene procedures as normal teeth
  • Less loss of jawbone mass, since the implant interacts with bone in a similar way to natural teeth

All-On-Four implants

When you’re replacing a single tooth with an implant, the system resembles a natural tooth very closely. The implant itself resembles the root of a natural tooth, and the artificial crown recreates the visible portion of a natural tooth in shape and appearance.

However, when you have multiple teeth to replace, you may not need one implant per lost tooth, particularly when the lost teeth are adjacent or if you’ve lost all your teeth. When you need to replace a complete set of upper or lower teeth, the All-On-Four system extends the advantages of dental implants.

Instead of one implant per tooth, the All-On-Four system uses four implants to anchor a permanent replacement set, top, bottom, or both. These prosthetic teeth are typically made from porcelain, a tough, stain resistant material that closely resembles natural teeth in color and translucence.

All your teeth can be firmly anchored with eight implants. If you’ve lost bone mass in your jaw due to lost teeth, you may still be a candidate for the All-On-Four system, since the precise location of the implants is variable. These can be placed where enough bone mass remains. As with all dental implants, the implant post and bone of the jaw integrate, creating a foundation that approaches the strength of natural teeth.

When to choose dentures over All-On-Four implants

Despite the many advantages of the implant-based All-On-Four system, there are a few considerations that may still steer you toward removable dentures. The most compelling reason may be the loss of jawbone mass. If you’ve been without natural teeth for some time, you may have lost so much bone that there’s not enough for successful implants. Bone grafting may be an option, but this adds to the time and expense of the All-On-Four procedure.

Contact Our dentist in Leesburg

Contact my clinic by phone or online to arrange a consultation. We can discuss your case and decide together which options are right for you. Book an appointment today.

We are family-focused dentistry and our dentists are offering dental services around these areas of Leesburg, VA:

Book an Appointment

* Fields with asterisks are required.
Font Resize
Contrast
  Click to listen highlighted text!