5 Factors to Consider Before Getting All-on-4 Dental Implants for Your Smile
Tooth loss is very prevalent among people. More than 35 million American individuals are missing at least one tooth. Missing teeth can cause several dental and overall health problems. The good news is that there are various choices for tooth restoration.
For those who are missing one tooth, we recommend a single-tooth implant. For individuals who have lost most or all of their teeth, we recommend All-on-4 dental implants, dentures, or bridges.
All-on-4 dental implants are one of the most prevalent treatments. This entails the implantation of four dental implants to support a whole arch of teeth. It is appropriate for both the upper and lower arches. However, there are a few factors to consider before choosing if this is the right option for you.
1. Issues with Speech
Speech difficulties are one of the most common concerns among our patients. What may seem like a minor problem to most people is a serious concern for patients. This tooth replacement method necessitates vertical and horizontal bulk for strength, which frequently necessitates bone grafting and soft tissue build-up. This indicates that the repair is larger than the original bone/soft tissue it replaced, making it difficult for patients to pronounce sounds like "D", "N", "S", and "T".
However, while this appears to be a trigger point for most patients, it is crucial to remember that the tongue can be retrained with time.
2. Difficulty Adapting to Bulk
In addition to the prosthesis' impact on speech, patients are concerned about adapting to the size of the repair. Patients are accustomed to feeling their natural soft tissue against their teeth. However, with All-on-4, the natural soft tissue touches the artificial soft tissue of the bridge, which then contacts the teeth. Some patients adapt to the shift, while others struggle with it. Unfortunately, they don't notice there's a problem until after the procedure, which is irreversible.
3. Proprioception
This topic is frequently disregarded, yet it is critical. When you bite down, receptors in the periodontal ligament prohibit you from exerting too much force. However, dental implants lack this ligament, therefore it takes greater effort to register awareness of touch. This causes patients to bite down too hard and fracture their restoration, especially when it is applied on both arches.
If there are still a few natural teeth, this is less of an issue because the ligaments provide signals to prevent you from biting down too hard.
4. Parafunction
When developing a dental treatment plan, it is important to consider habits such as irregular chewing cycles, bruxism, and clenching. As previously stated, natural teeth detect stresses better than implants. As a result, if possible, you might want to keep some natural teeth to assist change these tendencies.
If individuals with these tendencies need all of their teeth replaced, a bar-supported overdenture could be a better alternative. This is a modified version of the All-on-4 dental implant procedure. It is very recommended for people with severe bruxism. Patients can remove their overdentures at night and replace them with a flat-planed nightguard. This will safeguard the prosthesis while reducing strain on the implants and jawbone.
5. Tooth Decay Risk
For patients who are missing all of their teeth, All-on-4 dental implants are a potential choice. However, for people who still have some natural teeth, it may not be. If the natural teeth are mainly intact and require little, if any, repair, it is critical to save them if feasible. The risk of implant failure due to decay or periodontal disease is far lower than the chance of harming the prosthesis or implant/bone due to aggressive parafunction.
Why All-on-4 Dental Implants are the Preferred Choice for Tooth Restoration
For many years, dentures and bridges were the only options for restoring missing teeth, and they didn't always last long. They were continuously in need of modification and/or replacement because of bone loss or prosthetic wear and tear.
Dental implants have become the gold standard for tooth repair because they resemble, feel, and operate more like natural teeth than other options. The All-on-4 dental implants factor is a restoration solution that employs four dental implants to support an entire arch of teeth. It is appropriate for both the upper and lower arches.
However, while this tooth restoration approach has numerous advantages, there are a few factors to consider while weighing your options.
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