Implants for the upper and lower jaw has its own peculiarities, and the former is more complicated. For example, removable prostheses by definition hold up worse from above than from below, because gravity acts only in one direction: therefore, when talking or eating, the risk of the prosthetic structure falling out increases. In addition, the upper position is more likely to cause discomfort from foreign bodies in the mouth, which block the palate and make it difficult to taste food.
The absence of upper dental units has a much more significant impact on the quality of chewing and appearance of the person: it leads to disorders of the digestive system, and because the soft tissues are deprived of support in the form of teeth, wrinkles appear on the skin, and even general deformation of facial proportions is not uncommon. In addition, the bones of the upper jaw rapidly atrophy due to insufficient load, which only exacerbates the problems. In the case of a complete absence of teeth, all of this can be avoided by the placement of implants.
In which cases is implant placement on the upper jaw most appropriate?
- Loss of one of the front teeth – the elimination of this defect is especially important from an aesthetic point of view.
- The loss of several teeth at once, either in a row or with gaps (single teeth that have lost their “neighbors” become much more vulnerable).
- End defects – we are not talking about the wisdom teeth, which have poor functionality, but about “sevens” and “sixes”, which are the main chewing load, so their loss becomes a serious problem.
- Complete adentia (missing teeth).
- Inability to use alternative methods of prosthetics, for example, due to individual intolerance to the material of prosthetic structures.
Peculiarities of implant placement on the upper jaw
The upper jaw is a fixed bone. When chewing, the lower jaw, which is attached to the skull by the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), bears the brunt of the load. Because of this arrangement, the bone tissue is less dense and voluminous on top. The rather porous bone structure makes implant insertion a more laborious and time-consuming procedure.
Also a peculiarity of the upper jawbone is the presence of cavities in it – maxillary sinuses, which further complicates the installation of implants in this area, because it is inadmissible to penetrate into the sinuses of the artificial root. Additional problems are created by the relatively small width of this bone, which is sometimes insufficient for reliable fixation of the implant, so it becomes necessary to increase the hard tissue through osteoplasty.
All this causes the following problems of dental implants in the upper jaw: sinus elevators are often required, the rods take longer to engraft, and more supports are needed for the fixation of volumetric prosthetic structures. Implant surgeons have to take into account the specific features of the maxilla, including its blood supply (via the branches of the alveolar artery) and nerve supply (from the middle branch of the trigeminal nerve).
Finally, the aesthetics of the smile depends to a greater extent on the condition of the upper jaw – mainly the front teeth, which are visible when opening the mouth, but also the gum, which should also look natural and attractive. For this reason, upper denture implants ensure that several objectives are achieved at once: the implant is firmly anchored, chewing function is restored, and the aesthetic appearance is maintained.
A properly fitted denture should serve the patient for a long time without causing any problems and without revealing its presence when opening the mouth.
Types of implants on the upper jaw
The nature of implants is determined by what type of adentia the dentist is dealing with in a particular case.
Absence of one or two neighboring teeth
Here, conventional implants are used, when a crown is worn on a separate root. First, titanium rods are implanted into the bone, and after 4-6 months, the upper part of the prosthetic structure is installed. In the case of frontal teeth, it is possible to use temporary crowns, which are then replaced with permanent ones. It is true that even before the introduction of a single crown implant, bone grafting is often required – according to statistics, the need for this arises in almost 80% of cases.
Lack of several consecutive teeth (3-5)
Single implants are no longer necessary in this case – a two-supported prosthetic structure is cheaper. However, taking into account the high load, it is often necessary to implant the rods into deeper layers of hard tissue, namely into the basal bone of the skull. For better fixation, the pins can be placed at an angle. Consequently, although this operation is more complicated than conventional implant placement, osteoplasty is no longer necessary and the prostheses can be attached as early as 2-3 days after surgery.
Complete adentia (complete absence of teeth) of the upper jaw
Currently, there are two main techniques for restoring the entire dentition, the main difference being the number of supports used: All-on-4 (lower or upper jaw prostheses on 4 implants) and All-on-6 (all on six). In case of severe bone loss, root implantation into the basal bone is also recommended.
The service life of the implants depends on the quality of their placement as well as the subsequent care of the dentures. In particular, it is necessary to undergo regular preventive check-ups and professional cleaning of the teeth. In this case, the dentures can last for a very long time: the leading implant manufacturers offer a lifetime guarantee for their products, so that only the crowns, which on average are designed to last for 10 years, will need to be replaced.
Call our Brickell Dental Care at (407) 863 6487 or online at the website. We can make same-day appointments.