The Benefits of All-on-4 for Lower Teeth

While removable dentures in general can prove to be a hassle for patients with a lack of natural teeth, the most troublesome are lower dentures. Patients choose dentures first, however, because they are more economical up-front and appear to be the most cost-effective choice for replacing missing teeth.
However, full lower dentures can create more issues they fix and contribute to a reduced quality of life or even reduced nutritional intake, as healthy fibrous foods are tougher to chew and eat with unstable or uncomfortable dental prosthetics.

What Makes Lower Dentures Uncomfortable?

Bone Loss - After teeth are lost or extracted, bone becomes thinner over time, as there are no natural tooth roots to stimulate bone density after jaw arches heal from the extraction process. This bone resorption is actually accelerated in the lower jaw, creating significantly diminished bone quality than with extracted teeth in the upper jaw. If lower dentures are placed soon after teeth are extracted, they can quickly become loose and bothersome as bone quality and shape change.

Displacement - In everyday dental function, your tongue moves against teeth to help you speak, chew, and eat. With the tongue seated in your lower jaw arch, lower dentures are more easily moved out of place throughout the day, which creates problems for doing these simple but essential tasks.

Lack of Suction - It’s important to note that upper dentures cover more physical space in your mouth and include a section that covers your palate and provides for suction that firmly holds the prosthetic in place. Lower dentures, however, cover a lesser amount of space and are not able to hold suction as adequately, even with the assistance of denture paste. In addition to normal tongue movement, this lack of suction makes lower dentures a real problem for patients with total tooth loss in their lower jaw.
Stabilizing Permanent New Teeth with Minimal Implants

Some patients believe that they need an entire arch of implants, or prosthetic tooth roots, to permanently stabilize a full arch of teeth, which is a costly treatment -- but this is not the case. Advances in implant technology and treatment methodology have made finding stable and comfortable dentures solutions possible. New approaches to implant stabilization are also more affordable, with the use of few rather than full arches of implants.

While as few as two dental implants can be used to attach a full lower prosthesis, four dental implants can be used to permanently attach your lower denture. At West Houston Dental, we provide the revolutionary All on 4 treatment from Nobel BioCare, which utilizes only four implant posts, thereby cutting down on treatment costs, and holds your full arch of lower teeth in place -- no popping your teeth in and out each day.

For more information about solving lower denture problems with All on 4 treatment, please call our office today for your consultation.