For some reason, the number four and stability seem to fit together.
Think about it. Cars and truck have four tires because this allows them to maneuver without falling over.
Most tables and chairs have four legs. While humans are pretty good at staying upright on two legs, there’s no question that our four-legged friends are more balanced.
Maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise that you can make dentures much more stable with the addition of just four dental implants, too.
At Davenport Dental Group, one of the restorative services we offer is All-on-4® implant-supported dentures.
Dentures’ Drawbacks
From a cosmetic point of view, dentures do offer considerable advantages when compared with not having any teeth.
Modern dentures are made with much more life-like materials. This makes them look quite natural when you are smiling for photos or speaking to a friend over lunch.
That is, they look natural as long as they remain in place.
Traditional dentures rest over your gums. If you have your dentures long enough, you will experience them slipping out for any number of reasons. A cough or sneeze can cause them to come loose. Laughing or speaking may make your dentures fall out of place, too.
Eating can become more challenging with dentures, too. Multiple studies have shown that many denture wearers only have a fraction of the biting and chewing power of someone with all his or her teeth.
Biting into some foods can dislodge your dentures completely. Other foods may become much more tedious to chew.
You could consider using a denture adhesive. This can improve your chewing ability to some degree, but the adhesive also may interfere with the taste of your food. You will have to decide if that trade-off is worth it.
Another issue is that your dentures won’t always fit the same. Over time, you jaw can change (for reasons we will explain below), and that can affect how well your dentures fit in your mouth.
Implants For Improvements
To understand the benefits of getting dental implants, you first need to understand what implants are.
Dentures replace the missing crowns of your teeth. This is the part that is visible when you open your mouth.
Dental implants replace the roots: The parts of your teeth that are hidden behind your gums.
You are likely aware that roots are anchored into your jaw. You may not be aware that your roots and your jaw have a mutually beneficial relationship.
A strong jaw holds your roots firmly in place, while you roots encourage your jaw to remain healthy. Your jaw, like the other bones in your body, resorbs old tissue. As long as your jawbone receives signals to create new tissue, it will do so. Those signals come whenever you bite or chew and your roots push into your jawbone.
When your roots are removed, your jaw does not get those signals, and over time, that bone can lose mass and density, which affects how your dentures will fit inside your mouth.
Dental implants can replace the lost roots. This can keep your jaw healthy and strong for decades to come.
A series of implants in your mouth can support a set of dentures. This provides a stable, secure foundation, and you won’t need any adhesives to keep them in place.
With implant-supported dentures, you won’t have to worry about your dentures falling out while you are getting to the punchline of your joke.
Maybe more important, patients with implant dentures can regain nearly all of their original bite force. This means you will be able to order anything you want the next time you meet your friends for lunch, and you won’t have to worry about adhesives interfering with your enjoyment of your meal.
Four For All
In a general sense, you can understand why more dental implants would provide a more secure foundation for your dentures.
The All-on-4 procedure proves that four implants are enough to get the benefits of implant-supported dentures. When you go through this process, we strategically place your implants to provide the maximum benefit possible.
Getting fewer implants speeds up your recovery time and can save you money as well. All-on-4 is an efficient way of helping patients at our Laredo, TX, dentist office.
Make an appointment at the Davenport Dental Group to find out if All-on-4 could work for you. Use our online form or call to schedule a consultation with one of our doctors.