Are mini dental implants adequate for snap on dentures?

Question

I had a traditional dental implant about a year ago which was unsuccessful.  This was the first implant for the dentist, so I don't know if the procedure caused the failure.  After spending $15,000 over the last few years with expenses for bridges breaking at the gums, I recently had to extract teeth and now have a full upper denture.  Needless to say, this isn't ideal.  I'm extremely curious about the success rate of the mini implants for dentures.  Any information is helpful. Thanks

Answer 1

Hi,

 

Mini dental implants offer some stabilization to a denture but there are much better implant supported options. Especially in the upper arch where the bone is softer. In my practice I would provide 6 regular size implants to support a screw retained Prettau zirconia bridge. This would not be removable and because of the material would never chip or stain

The other option is a bar retained overdenture but the screw retained bridge is more stable and permanent.

Dr. Michael Tischler
Woodstock, NY
www.tischlerdental.com

Answer 2

Be very cautious when it comes to mini-implant supported removable prosthesis (dentures). The success rates are extremely difficult to determine for numerous reasons but the primary reason is most failures are not reported. Clinically, I do see far more failed mini-implants versus traditional implants. Mini-implants were originally designed to be a provisional (temporary) implant to bridge between tooth removal and implant placement following a brief period of healing. The mini-implant was designed to provide temporary support to a removable prosthesis and then be removed when the traditional implants were placed. There is a substantial degree of controversy within the dental community regarding the use of mini-implants to support any type of restoration for an extended period of time. Keep in mind that the current Standard of Care is to evaluate patients with a Cone Beam CT scan prior to implant placement to determine the quantity and quality of bone and location of critical anatomic structures (ie. nerves and abnormal bone contour). A CBCT scan will often times reveal adequate bone to allow placement of standard diameter implants.

Ken Templeton DDS
Tulsa, OK
www.revitalizeimplants.com/
918-508-2121