Overdenture with Four Implants

The Story:

When this patient first presented to his dentist, he had only a few remaining upper teeth that were badly decayed and had to be extracted. Then, his dentist made him a full upper denture, but the patient had great difficulty eating or talking with it. He complained of gagging from the denture base that covered his palate. The denture was also quite loose and dislodged frequently during eating. He tried denture adhesives to improve this, but it made him even more uncomfortable. He then consulted with Dr. Kazemi to discuss how dental implants can help him better retain his upper denture and allow him to eat and talk more comfortably.

Treatment:

The patient had a good amount of bone, and after discussing the options between a fixed or removable implant supported prosthesis, he chose an overdenture (a removable type of prosthesis). Dr. Kazemi placed four dental implants. After three months of healing, the restorative dentist fabricated a new overdenture on the implants retained by special attachments. Because of implants, the denture was shortened over his palate which made it much more comfortable to wear. Now, the patient can eat any type of food he likes as the denture is extremely retentive and stable. Also, the implants are preventing the bone loss that often occurs over time from use of conventional dentures.

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