May 10, 2023

All on 4 and Dentures: Everything You Need to Know

When it comes to missing teeth, there are two effective solutions you’ve probably heard of: all-on-4 dental implants and dentures.

Missing teeth can carry on a large number of problems, including your smile’s appearance, and difficulty talking or eating, among others. These two treatments can give you an effective solution.

With so many people going through this common problem, it’s hard to know which one will work best for you. What if we helped break down the difference between these two?

What are Dentures and All-on-4?

Both these treatments are used when we’re facing missing teeth problems. However, they are very different.

The All on 4 Treatment is a technique designed to reduce the number of implants used in full mouth restoration. The implants support a full arch of replacement teeth and are installed at an angle which is especially helpful for people who have experienced bone loss in their jaws. Different from dentures, all-on-4 is a permanent treatment and it doesn’t come out.

Dentures, on the other hand, are missing teeth replacements that can fit directly over the gums by connecting the artificial teeth to an acrylic base that’s designed to look exactly like your gums, giving your smile a natural look. Dentures can be full or partial, depending on if they replace an entire row of teeth or a small number.

Main Differences Between All-on-4 and Dentures

There are important facts you need to know before making a decision. For instance, you must remove dentures every night or morning and clean them extensively, which can be very time-consuming. With the all-on-4 treatment, you can brush and floss with the same method that you used with your natural teeth.
Dentures must be replaced every few years to avoid slippage. This is because when the roots of your mouth aren’t present, your jaw shrinks over time.

Dentures also require avoiding certain foods, and might not look or feel like normal teeth as all-on-4 does. The All-on-4 replacement teeth are fixed with implanted “roots,” so they protect your jaw and don’t come with dietary restrictions.
Dentures rest directly on the gums, which can lead to ongoing discomfort and the development of painful mouth sores. All-on-4 implants are fastened securely in the mouth and should never cause discomfort.
All-on-4 implants are a little more secure than dentures since they do not come out. But they still require proper dental hygiene to stay functioning.

On the other hand, they also have different benefits:

Dentures improve the look of your smile, they are made for your mouth, they are easy to clean, and they can reduce further oral health issues. All-on-4 function as normal teeth, have a shorter recovery time, fewer implant posts are required, are beneficial for your jawbone, help lessen the progression of jawbone loss, are fastened securely in the mouth, and should never cause discomfort!

Both all-on-4 implants and dentures provide stability and strength to the jaw to prevent bone loss. There are pros and cons to both of these treatments, so now that you know more about all-on-4 implants and dentures, make sure to talk it over with your dentist to decide the right choice for you based on your dental needs.