The traditional way of restoring a full arch involved extracting the unrestorable teeth, bone grafting with human or bovine bone, wait around 6 month for the bone to heal, then place the implants, let them heal for around 6 months and then take new impressions and fabricate the full set of teeth. So, the whole procedure was taking on average 18 months and it was very costly. It is performed that way by many practitioners in US. During the 18 months the patient had to wear dentures(very uncomfortable).
In our days, all that hassle, time and expense is not necessary. There are more options available with the advancements of technology(all-on-4, Teeth-in-a-Day, Teeth-in-1-Day).
Sewell Dental Arts Patient before having all-on-4 procedure or teeth-in-a-day.
The same patient after the final bridge(made of porcelain) was delivered and attached to the dental implants.
This is how the procedure goes:
During the initial visit, the patient has the photos, xrays and impressions done and chooses the color of the new teeth. At the day of the procedure, the patient comes in at 9.00 am, takes some meds, gets anesthetized, has the bad teeth taken out, has the implants placed, sutures(stiches are placed), and impressions of the implants taken. This phase should be done by noon. After that the patient has a break for 2-3 hours while the same day teeth are manufactured in our in house lab by our expert dental technician. During the break the patient can go home, eat, take a nap, etc… or can stay in one of our office rooms( has privacy), watch TV and eat ice cream. After the teeth are done, they are placed in the mouth, secured, adjust the bite and the patient goes home with fixed teeth. He/she can eat right away( just cautiously). After 3 months( healing period) the teeth are replaced with permanent teeth( made of ceramic or composite).
Patients who were afraid to smile for many years, in pain and discomfort for many years, couldn’t eat properly have a new set of beautiful teeth that they never hoped for in less than 6-8 hours. And all of that done without pain, less expensive than the conventional way and they could eat, smile right away and go to work or play golf the next day.
It is really a phenomenal service that patients(and some doctors) cannot believe that is possible. Please feel free to contact my Washington Township office, Sewell Dental Arts at 856-582-2220 to schedule a free consultation. I will be happy to meet you, get to know you and see how I can help you. My office is not a chain, franchise or group and all the work is performed start to finish by me. Septimiu Pastiu, DMD