All on 4 Washington DC
 "Premierdontics™" our All-on-4® Treatment Concept - with our Premierdontics™ treatment approachLosing your teeth is a serious event. Every aspect of your life is affected. Tasks that you once did without much thought, such as eating and speaking, become more difficult. The quality of your smile significantly deteriorates. Even the health of your jawbone is impacted. Without your teeth, the jawbone begins to weaken, losing height, width, and mass. The bone starts to change shape. When you lose an entire arch of teeth, this can have a major impact on your facial appearance.
The lips and cheeks sink in, your skin sags, and wrinkles begin to appear. Suddenly, you have aged well beyond your actual years. Typically, when you lose all of the teeth in a single arch, whether it is your top or bottom jaw, an implant supported denture can be used in place of traditional dentures. However, without sufficient bone mass, this type of restoration is likely to fail. At Neil Starr, DDS, PC, we can help you to avoid the need for a bone graft, or getting stuck with dentures, with All-on-4® Treatment Concept.
What Are Dental Implants?Dental implants are a revolutionary alternative to traditional tooth replacement treatments like bridges and dentures. Rather than the restoration sitting above the gums, dental implants involve the surgical implantation of titanium posts directly into the jawbone. The bone fuses to the posts as you heal, integrating them into the jaw in a process called osseointegration. Successful osseointegration turns the implants into stable roots that are then used to support your replacement crowns.
Dental implants offer numerous benefits over traditional treatments. They look, feel, and function just like your natural teeth, unlike dentures, which often feel foreign and may not look completely natural. Implants are more comfortable, with your teeth supported by the posts rather than your gums, which were never designed to support the pressures exerted on them by dentures. They are stable, the crowns secured in place with small screws. They will not slide around or slip out of place. The biggest benefit of implants, however, is that the posts function just like your natural tooth roots and work to stimulate the jawbone. Because of this, implants have the unique ability to stop and prevent bone loss in the jaw. No other replacement can offer this benefit.
The Premierdontics™ DifferenceIf you have lost all of the teeth in either your upper or lower jaw, you might be considered a candidate for an implant supported denture. However, to be a candidate, you need to have sufficient bone mass remaining in your jaw. Without enough mass, the implants cannot properly fuse and are much more likely to be loose or fail. In the event of insufficient bone mass, this used to mean one of two things. Either you had to go with dentures or, if you still wanted implants, you would have to undergo a bone graft first, another surgical procedure that is designed to restore missing bone mass. After a bone graft, it can take several months to heal and then the implant procedure can begin.
An implant supported denture uses 6 to 8 implants to support your replacement teeth. Even if one implant fails due to insufficient bone mass, the entire restoration is compromised. This is where the All-on-4® Treatment Concept comes into play. Instead of 6 to 8 implants, All-on-4® Treatment Concept implants use only 4 implants. You may be wondering how fewer implants can provide the support necessary for a restoration when you have experienced significant bone loss. The success of All-on-4® Treatment Concept implants is not in the number of implants. Instead, the success of the treatment relies on their placement. Two implants are inserted vertically at the front of the jaw. There is naturally more bone mass in this area. The other two implants are inserted at the back of the jaw, one on each side. These implants are inserted at a 45-degree angle. The angle allows for maximum contact between the bone and the posts, allowing for better osseointegration and a more stable implant. In the upper jaw, this angle also eliminates the risk of puncturing the maxillary sinus cavities.
Some Hidden Benefits of "Premierdontics™":| • |
Avoid the need for traditional removable dentures. |
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Fewer implants will be placed and therefore there is less surgery performed.
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Recovery is much quicker.
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There is less need for bone or sinus grafting. |
If your jaw is lacking the mass necessary to support the implants required for a typical implant supported denture, you may be a candidate for All-on-4® Treatment Concept. Call Neil Starr, DDS, PC at (202) 293-7177 to find out whether you are a candidate for the Premierdontics ™ Implant -Treatment Approach or the “All-on-4”® Implant treatment concept.
Premierdontics™ is a trademark of Neil L. Starr, D.D.S., P.C. All-on-4® is a registered trademark of Nobel Biocare. |
