3 Incisors Aesthetic Zone

This lady was referred to Crickhowell Dental Practice by another local dentist. She had been struggling with an upper denture for many years. She had tried the usual plastic dentures which she could not get on with. Her dentist subsequently made her a metal based partial denture, which are usually much better tolerated than plastic dentures. Unfortunately her problems persisted. She did not feel the dentures were secure enough and felt as though they would drop down any second. This affected her confidence when speaking to people and when going out for food socially.

Prior to embarking on the dental implant surgery, the patient’s oral hygiene and gum health was improved to make good foundations for successful dental implant treatment. The retained root stumps were removed and the sockets were grafted with Bio-Oss (artificial bone) to maintain the bone volume. Two Straumann dental implants were then placed 12 weeks later and left to integrate for 12 weeks. The patient then had a prototype implant bridge fitted at which point she was able to throw away her dentures for good. She had this for 4 months to allow the gums to mature and form a pleasing shape. The impressions were taken and the final porcelain bridge was produced and fitted. The patient was very pleased and she can now eat whatever she wants and does not have to worry about her teeth dropping down.

The patient wanted the teeth to look as natural as possible. As you can see, our technician, James Rimmer, did a fabulous job matching the colour and characteristics of the patient’s other teeth.

Once again, due to the precise placement of the implants, we were able to make this implant bridge “screw retained”. This means that there is not any cement involved and so if we ever need to remove the bridge to clean the implants more thoroughly, we can do this very simply and quickly.