How many implants are needed to install in a toothless jaw?
It depends on three things:
- what kind of prosthetic work do you want;
- is there enough available bone for implant installation;
- finances.
We distinguish several types of prosthetic work on implants. The simplest and at the same time the cheapest is the production of prostheses on locators. Four implants are needed in the upper jaw and two, preferably three dental implants in the lower jaw. The patient can and must remove the prosthesis in order to wash and clean it after every meal.
Next is the All on 4 concept, which requires 4 dental implants in the jaw, installed at certain angles. A ceramic bridge is made on the installed implants and fixed to the implants with a screw. It is a fixed bridge, the patient cannot remove it from the mouth, but the dentist can.
The All on 6 concept, as the most stable and also the most expensive, involves the installation of 6 dental implants in the jaw that also carry a ceramic bridge. As with the all on 4 concept, it is a fixed bridge that cannot be removed by the patient but can be removed by the dentist. The dentist eventually removes it for control and cleaning, and then re-fixes it in the mouth. If the all on 6 ceramic bridge is cemented with cement and not with a screw, the dentist cannot simply remove it and put it back in the mouth, but must destroy it (cut it) in order to be able to remove it.