Fixed Porcelain Bridges with Dental Implants Case Study.
A patient named Jason came to the Cosmetic Dentistry Center about a year and a half ago. He had lost all of his upper teeth three years ago. At that time in his life, dental implants were not an affordable option for him. He had chosen instead to opt for a full upper denture which he could afford, and which would provide him with sufficient cosmetics in order to eat and smile.

Over the years, however, Jason had become highly annoyed by the dentures we was wearing. During his first consultation in our office, he explained that his partials were causing significant discomfort to his palate. He was finally ready to consider the investment in dental implants, provided we could make them affordable for him. We assured him that a number of financial programs were available that would allow him to receive the treatment he needed.

Once he agreed to move forward with dental implants, we began by taking x-rays of Jason's mouth. It was necessary to do this in order to determine exactly how much bone mass remained in his upper jaw. We always have to determine this because titanium dental implants screw into the jawbone itself and must have a certain amount of surface to attach to. The greater the bone mass, the more implants we can place in a person's jaw. When bone mass has deteriorated to some degree, we have to used dental implants in conjunction with other cosmetic dental techniques to restore a person's smile.

In Jason's case, we determined that the best course of action would be to use a combination of porcelain dental implants and implant-anchored porcelain bridgework. Porcelain bridges used in cosmetic dentistry are different than the traditional bridges used in general practice. While they may look the same, they function much differently. Traditional bridges use surrounding healthy teeth as anchors. This can lead to complications later on as the bridgework wears down the enamel of the teeth to which they are attached.

Implant-anchored porcelain bridges that are anchored to dental implants do not cause these complications because they never touch existing teeth. When one or more dental implants are placed in the jaw, they function as anchors that hold bridgework in place. The bridges themselves contain porcelain replacement teeth that look identical to the implants. Such a combination allows for an entire upper or lower jaw, or even a person's entire mouth, to be completely rebuilt. It also results in a much stronger dental bridge that is easier to clean, and the porcelain teeth replacements are hard, stain resistant, and capable of chewing any foods found in a normal diet.

Careful study of Jason's x-rays revealed that his upper jaw had sufficient bone mass to support a total of 8 dental implants. We placed these in key locations in the back, sides, and front of his mouth. After the post-operative healing phase was complete, we then anchored the bridges in place. The end result was a new set of permanent replacement teeth that felt as natural to Jason as his original teeth had felt in his 20s, presented him with no discomfort when he ate what he wanted to eat, and gave him a whole new smile to show to the world.