If periodontal disease has taken away the proper amount of gum needed to retain your teeth in the proper position with strength and integrity, then you may wish to consider the use of the Implant Retained Full Denture.

The implant retained full denture is a major upgrade and enhancement from just having the old traditional denture appliance, in which you apply an adhesive every morning when you wake up. They stay secure in your mouth all day long, and you just simple pop them off at night for daily cleaning.

The fabrication of an implant retained full denture is much different than the traditional old denture appliance, in which the entire unit is fabricated from 2 part resin polymer, which has been pigmented to the color of your gums and teeth for a great match. This type of resin when placed in the mouth, has proven not to be detected as food, and will not make your mouth salivate when not eating.

One of the secrets to the design and fabrication of a great denture is being able to get the many axioms of curves and dimensions correct for a proper fit, and constructing the unit from material that simulates real teeth as close as possible, so that the mouth does sense it as food, and cause excess salivation.

These are the old traditional dentures, which the current or past patient is upgrading from. If you’re currently wearing these already, then you know the story. But if you’re a first time denture candidate, then upgrading to Implant Retained Full Dentures is like having power windows in your car.

This is an example of what your new Resin Based Full Denture will look like. Notice how much cleaner the look is, and how details such as tooth roots, and individual teeth are much more detailed than the old traditional dentures from the 20th century.

Full Denture Dental Implants are a two-phase procedure. The first phase is surgical, i.e. the placement of at least 4 fixtures in either the top or bottom in the bone. Usually an oral surgeon or a periodontist (gum Surgeon) will do the surgery after first evaluating the candidate on such things as dental health, lifestyle, jawbone quality, and oral hygiene habits. Special x-rays may also be necessary. Then the surgeon and the restorative dentist consult together about your case, and plan your implant treatment program.

The Dental Implants surgery is usually done in either the oral surgeon or periodontist office under conscious sedation (twilight sleep). The titanium fixtures are surgically placed in your jaw. These fixtures are essentially artificial roots that serve as the framework to support the full denture that will come later. For the first 3-6 months after surgery these fixtures are completely below the gum line gradually bonding with the jawbone. During this time you will be wear a temporary removable denture, and eating from a soft diet. Some patients report minor pain and swelling immediately after the surgery, but the vast majority of patients can immediately return to their normal activities.

We need at least 4 fixtures to hold the removable full denture in place, yet allow you to remove the full denture with ease.  4 fixtures is the perfect balance between strength and holding power, and being able to pop them off.

Below are images of the healing caps, then the procedure of removing them and putting them back on for the molding process.

We chose not to show the actual oral surgery procedure because most people are sensitive to the graphics. But these are the healing caps that are attached to the top of the Jaw Fixtures after installation.

These healing caps make sure that the gum tissue grows around the healing cap, so that the gum tissue grows perfectly around the studs, and are properly aligned. They also make sure that the proper size hole is created in the gum line, and that the new gum tissue does not grow back in this area.

Think of them as pierced ears, in which you place starter earrings in, so the hole does not close.

With an Implant Retained Full Denture, it is not necessary to use a Jaw Anchor for each individual tooth. Instead, we carefully place 4 anchors up front on the top and bottom. Any more anchors would make it very difficult to remove the denture when needed.

Here were taking off the healing caps, and preparing to attach a special ball lock and gasket, that enables the denture to pop on and off when cleaning is required.

They also seal the female side of the locking mechanism on the full denture, so small bits of food do not enter and change or alter the fit.

Here were attaching a special ball lock abutment to each jaw anchor, that enables the denture to pop on and off when cleaning is required. The locks or gaskets create a pressure type of friction, to hold the full denture in place.

Next we are placing special blue gaskets to the tops of the special abutments. These gaskets will contract and expand when taking the denture on or off, and provide a small amount of shock absorption when chewing or eating. When these gaskets wear out, you can just pop new ones on when needed.

At last, we will squirt special molding latex into the gum line, and build up a good mold that indicates the precise location of each abutment, and the exact measurements needed for the dental labs to hand craft and fabricate a new denture.

We've already attached the special abutment to the jaw anchor, and placed the round blue gaskets on.

Now we are squirting latex molding material into the gum line, to create a exact replica negative of the gum line so the new denture can fabricated to the exact dimensions for a perfect fix. The latex sets up pretty quick, in around 15 minutes or so. After the latex is injected, we will cover the latex with a mold container.

This is the finished mold after curing. This mold will now be sent off to the dental labs, and a new denture will not be fabricated to these specifications.

In the mean time, the special abutments will be taken off, and the healing caps put back on. Then the temporary denture will be worn again until the dental labs finish the new denture. This takes about 2 weeks at the most.

The dental lab has now finished the denture, and has shipped it to our facility. We will now take the healing caps back off, and test the new denture for fit and comfort. If any sharp edges exist, we will make adjustments to the denture by trimming off any excess material. Now we will put the special abutment and blue gaskets back on and once again check the fix of the new denture. More adjustments will be made if needed. We then do a bite down test, in which you bite down on some cotton pads to see if there is any shift, or slight pain from sharp edges. When the fix is good and OK by you, we will show you the results in the mirror. At last, we will then spend time training you on how to take them on and off, and clean them at night when not in use.

This is the finished full lower denture that came from the lab. The upper denture has already been installed and fitted for use, and fit perfectly in the mouth.

Now we will fit the lower full denture until the customer is satisfied with the fit and feel of the denture, and then do a bite down pressure test. If the pressure test is good, then we have done our job.

The customer is now looking in the mirror and wondering just how real looking they are. He gets up out of the chair and starts walking around, and looks in the mirror several more times. Now he starts thinking about going out to dinner and ordering a steak.