How Does All on 4 Dental Implants Work?

Basically 4-6 dental implants can be placed to replace a full upper of lower set of teeth. The series of implants is used to permanently connect a full mouth implant bridge. Quite literally all your upper or lower teeth can be replaced on as few as four dental implants- hence All on Four.

All on Four is now available using Cosmetic, Tooth Colored Metal Free Zirconia Implants!

A full mouth of teeth can easily be replaced with metal free Zeramex Zirconia Dental Implants, Zirconia Abutments, and Zirconia Crowns.

IV Sedation Dentistry is available for All on 4 in Rockville, Maryland.

The All-on-4 method involves using only 4 dental implants to support a full arch of replacement teeth. Natural Dentist Associates, a dental implant center in Rockville, MD, has a different approach than some other practices. All-on-4 dental implants typically involve the removal of all remaining teeth and the placement of 4 dental implants with a bridge featuring 12-14 prosthetic teeth. However, Natural Dentist Associates does not always extract all teeth and instead uses at least 5 or 6 dental implants to provide more stability. Removing all remaining teeth should be a last resort and only done when necessary. A full mouth All-on-4 treatment in the Washington, D.C. area can cost between $25,000 and $35,000. Natural Dentist Associates includes the additional cost of extra implants to reduce the risk of losing the entire case.

There are many concerns and questions with All on 4:
  1. Will All on 4 Dental implants be able to hold the forces of 12-14 teeth over time???
  2. What happens if a dental implant fails later???
  3. Do the teeth ever need to be removed?
  4. Do the teeth feel natural?
Is 4 stable enough or do we need more Implants?

The jury is out as to whether or not dental implants are 3-4x stronger than natural teeth.  But, no, as I have personally seen the failures in my office.  If just one dental implant fails in an All on 4 dental implant case, the entire investment is lost and the entire case needs to be redone.  12-14 teeth can definitely not be supported by by 3 dental implants.  The 12-14 tooth implant bridge will need to be removed, the failed implant will need to be replaced, and the entire 12-14 tooth bridge will need to be remade (since the 4th implant position will  have changed and the original bridge will no longer fit).

In most dental offices, the patient will have seen an oral surgeon or periodontist who has placed the dental implants and a second dentist (general dentist or prosthodontist) who has made the implant bridge.  In the event of an implant failure, the implant dentist will most of the time replace the failed dental implant at no charge.  The 12-14 tooth bridge is the problem since the fabrication costs alone for the bridge can cost over $10,000. No dentist is going to pay a lab another $10,000 in the event of a failure, and it may not even be their fault and in fact they didn’t place the implant that failed anyways.  In some cases there can be finger pointing here.

Maintenance for a Full Mouth Permanent Implant Bridge

Implant retained bridges using All-on-4 rarely need to be removed especially if the patient does a good job of cleaning the bridge. On average the prothesis will need to be removed every 3 years, cleaned and replaced.  Many implant centers offering only dental implants will finish All-on-4 dental implant solutions and not offer any future maintenance.  Individuals seeking implant cases should inquire about whether or not future maintenance or service is offered.

Implant retained bridges do not feel natural, they will however look like teeth, function like teeth and sound like teeth.  After a period of time they will be comfortable and perhaps feel “natural”.

We serve primarily Rockville, Bethesda, Silver Spring, Wheaton, Potomac, DC, Gaithersburg, Kensington, Germantown, Burtonsville, Laurel, Columbia and Northern Virginia ( Mclean, Tysons Corner, Great Falls, Arlington ) but people travel from all over the country for our specialty and Holistic Dental Services.

Top Rated Holistic Dentist in Maryland

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Natural Dentist Associates
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 301-770-2270
Fax: 301-468-5553
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5809 Nicholson Lane T123