Losing your teeth due to disease, decay, injury, age, or an accident can be devastating. Implant retained dentures are a tooth replacement option designed to be more effective and safer than traditional methods.
Essentially, these denture implants look, feel, and function like natural teeth, restoring your chewing ability and improving your speech and smile.
Let’s review everything you should know about this tooth replacement option, including benefits and implant retained dentures price.
What Are Implant-Retained Dentures?
Dental implants are titanium rods usually affixed to your jawbone to secure dental crowns or dentures. They go in the same place your old tooth root used to be.
So, what are implant retained dentures?
Also known as overdentures, they are the dentures attached to these titanium rods or screws. They provide better function than traditional dentures because they are secured to the jawbone through implants. One such denture is stabilized using 2 to 4 dental implants in most cases.
Since this type of denture is not ill fitting the patient satisfaction is extremely high.
Benefits of Implant-Retained Dentures
Many dentists and all patients prefer implant retained dentures to conventional dentures for the efficiency and stability.
Five reasons you should consider this replacement option include:
- Restored Bite Force – Implant retained dentures are very stable because they are connected to the jawbone. This feature restores the wearer’s bite force to normal, allowing one to chew foods they desire including apples, corn on the cob and chicken wings.
- Better Stability – The improved stability of these false teeth gives them a better fit than regular dentures so that they don’t float or move around in the wearer’s mouth.
- Natural Look – These dentures look, feel, and function like healthy, normal teeth. They also give you a natural and effective bite.
- Comfortable Fit– Because they fit better in your mouth, these dentures are more comfortable and produce less friction on your gums. The patient will not experience any more denture sores or rubbing of the gums and never, ever need denture adhesive again.
- Jawbone Preservation – The titanium rods used to fix these dentures usually mimic normal teeth roots, stimulating the jawbone and preventing bone loss for years to come.
Implant Retained Dentures Vs. Implant Supported Dentures
Implant supported dentures Vs. Implant retained is a popular debate in the world of dentistry.
What is the difference between these two tooth replacement options, and which one is ideal for you?
When it comes to implant retained dentures, fewer implants are required to anchor the dentures. This means that this option is more affordable than its counterpart. It is also often possible to use mini implants. In some cases, the implants in this option can be positioned to maximize the available bone in places where it is strong and thick, which eliminates or reduces the need for bone grafts.
However, while implant retained dentures restore a patient’s chewing ability, they don’t fully mimic a natural bite, and the gums absorb some of the bite force. They also have to be removed and cleaned every night. This can make them inconvenient.
On the other hand, implant supported dentures absorb the full bite force into the jawbone, which means they produce the most natural bite. Nonetheless, more implants are required to support dentures in this treatment, and mini implants can often not be used. This makes implant supported dentures more expensive than retained dentures. Additionally, supported dentures require strong bones, which are not always available, so that it might call for bone and soft tissue regeneration treatments.
Factors to Consider When Picking a Dental Implant Option
Both implant supported dentures and implant retained dentures are safe and effective tooth replacement options, albeit with differing benefits.
When choosing between the two, you should consider the following four factors:
1. Cost
One of the most important considerations for patients is the implant retained dentures cost.
An entire mouth of implant retained dentures cost between $10-25,000. This is dependent on how many teeth need to be removed, the need for temporary dentures and the number of implants installed.
Although implant supported dentures are considered to offer more benefits, they are costlier than their alternative. Traditional implants cost between $1,600 and $2,200 each, and the addition of more implants will cost extra. However, the total cost will depend on the quality of denture material and type of implant. Still, implant retained dentures are always going to be more cost-effective.
2. Diet
Implant retained dentures are a great option if you don’t mind giving up your hard and chewy foods. They are not very effective in mimicking a natural bite because they eliminate or reducing absorb some of the bite force and transfer the rest to the gums instead of the jawbone. However, implant-supported dentures will serve you better if you love foods that need more chewing – like steaks, corn nuts, ice and hard candy.
3. Lifestyle
As mentioned, implant retained dentures need to be removed and cleaned every night. Many patients don’t like the reminder of their tooth loss by removing their false teeth every night. If this sounds like you, you should consider implant supported dentures – a more permanent option.
4. Health
Lastly, patients with sleep apnea or TMJ might prefer implant supported dentures to retained dentures. This is because wearing strong, well-fitting teeth throughout the night might be more comfortable than having to remove them. However, implant retained dentures are a strong and viable solution if a patient is otherwise healthy, especially when they are fabricated using stronger materials.
Bottom Line On Implant Dentures
Patient’s that have full tooth loss tend to find traditional dentures unsatisfactory and uncomfortable. This is why dental implants used to support dentures are becoming more and more popular.
Although implant-supported dentures and retained dentures offer different benefits, both offer better bite function and improved denture stability. Even better, they look and feel like natural teeth!
Contact us via email, phone, or text, for a consultation with one of our doctors to see which one is right for you
Serving patients in Rockville, Potomac, Bethesda, Gaithersburg, Germantown, Aspen Hill, Frederick, Derwood, North Potomac, Silver Spring and Washington DC