Mini Dental Implants for the Thin Ridge ~ Back Molar Teeth Can be Replaced without Bone Grafts

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I get asked this question all the time.  I like to answer this by explaining my philosophy that we try and place what size implant will fit the bone not how to make the bone fit the implant. 

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This patient has a multitude to dental issues.  The one that I want to point out for this particular post is the thin lower ridge of bone.  This is what happens over the years after teeth are extracted.  This lower ridge is at most 4mm wide…not enough for a traditional size implant.

  What can be offered to this patient is a block bone graft (an additional surgery prior to placing the dental implants) OR two mini dental implant to replace one molar. 

Why two mini dental implants?  Well two of these mini implants will disperse the force created when chewing on a molar size crown.  The two mini dental implants also create the same surface area as a larger size traditional regular implant and can be done without any additional surgery, cost, discomfort and healing time.

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This photograph demonstrates the versatility of the mini dental implant.  Two Intra Lock minis have been placed in a thin ridge of bone.  These two minis will be used to support a molar size back tooth crown. 

 

 

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The patient will be able to floss right to the mini dental implant to keep the area clean (crown, gum and mini dental implant).  Since the crown that will be made for the minis will be a tissue level there is no part that is not accessible to be kept clean. 

Dr.'s sometimes ask me how do you clean in between the two implants?  Easy….we place a flossing groove to help guide the patient's floss or water pick.  No different than flossing between a bridge.

 

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Example of the underside of a mini dental implant crown.  Notice the 'flossing groove'.  The clinical photo shows my floss in between the two mini dental implants as I am removing the excess cement.  This is the same thing the patient will do to keep the new mini dental implant crown clean…brush and floss. 

 

The mini dental implant…a great solution to have in the dental toolbox to help patients that do not wish to undergo additional surgery prior to dental implants. 

Paresh B Patel DDS  Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants

Dental Implants Hickory Lenoir Asheville NC

Mini Dental Implant Dentures ~ IMTEC MDI, OCO Biomedical, Intra Lock

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Do you have a loose denture?  If you have around an hour of time a few mini dental implants can be placed to secure that upper or lower denture. 

Mini Dental Implants Denture

3 out of 4 mini dental implants placed in the lower jaw to anchor in a snap in/out denture.  Mini Dental Implants can typically be placed without cutting the gums, so less surgery, less healing time, less discomfort and less cost for the patient. 

This also allows medically compromised patients, such as diabetics or patients on blood thinning medicines, to be potential candidates for mini dental implants.

 

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Four snaps inside the existing denture.  In this case we were able to use the patients denture and fit the retentive snaps inside the lower denture.  These snap on top of the 4 mini dental implants. 

 

 

 

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About an hour later the mini dental implants are in place and the denture is fitted with the snaps.  An easy and cost effective way to help patients suffering from loose or ill fitting dentures. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paresh B Patel DDS  Mini Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants Lenoir Hickory Asheville NC

Dental Implants Charlotte NC

 

No More Loose Dentures with Dental Implants ~Charlotte Today

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Paresh B Patel DDS interview on Charlotte Today Show on Dental Implants to secure in a snap in upper denture. 

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Dental Implants NC

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No More Loose Dentures ~ Mini Dental Implants by MiniMark Can Help..but not Cost Effectively

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Having a set of loose or ill fitting dentures can create a whole set of problems.  These problems can include cosmetic issues (the first things people see is your smile) and function(how well you can eat).

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Sometimes my patients walk in what several sets of dentures they have had made over the years.  The first thing all of them say is that none of them fit.  I think its not that the dentures never fit it is that the dentures had nothing to hold them in place!  Thus the need for dental implants to secure in dentures.

 

So while some people come in to get their smile back ~ others come in to be able to function (eat) again.  I think with mini dental implants you can get both.  The ability to smile again.  The ability to eat the foods you enjoyed (salads, steaks, fresh vegetables).  Your diet will improve as you no longer have to swallow chunks of food. 

 

You self esteem will be regained as you now don't have to wonder what can I eat at the party or family outing.  You now don't have to wonder are my dentures going to fall out at the sporting event as you cheer, or sing at church.

So consider mini dental implants to secure in your dentures. At around 1/2 the cost of traditional implants with little to no pain its a safe and effective procedure. 

When you come to see us you only have to see one Doctor.  We place the mini dental implant and fit your denture with the snaps in the same office.  One Doctor means fewer visits and reduced costs.

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Greatly increase the aesthetics of your smile with secure mini dental implant retained dentures.  You will look years younger.

 

 

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The right set of mini dental implant retained dentures will also allow you to have proper function (chewing your food properly and the ability to speak correctly). 

 

MiniMark Implants

This case was done with MiniMark Implants.  2 mini dental implants in the front and 2 traditional size implants in the back.  All of the MiniMark implants have Zest Locator attachments that allow the denture to 'snap' into the mouth.  Once that is done and the implants heal the denture can be converted into a horseshoe shape for even more comfort. 

As a General Dentist I am pleased with the Zest Locator but I am extremely dissapointed in the price point of the MiniMark Implant.  It averages about 3 to 4 times the costof a comparable mini dental implant.  3M IMTEC, Intra Lock, OCO Biomedical all make excellent mini dental implants for lower and upper dentures at a more attractive price point.  With a lower price point more patients can move forward with implant retained dentures…something just not possible with the mini mark implant system.

The competitors to ACE Surgical mini mark implants offer surgical setups that allow Dentists to place a wider assortment of dental implants.  I must ask why any Dentist would want to invest several thousand dollars into a system that limits their ability so much?  With that kind of investment you could place minis to small diameter to larger size implants and not have to have several placement kits. 

I encourage any Dentist who does not place dental implants to learn how.  There are several good one day seminars on how to place mini dental implants.  These include seminars from Todd Shatkin, Ben Oppenheimer or mine (  OCO Biomedical Mini Dental Implant Seminar ).

Paresh B Patel Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implant Dentures

Dental Implants Hickory NC

Dental Implants to get rid of a Upper Partial Denture

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If you are missing a few teeth and wear a partial denture I can empathise with your situation. 

Who wants to wear all that metal and plastic in their mouth if there was another option?

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Typical design of a cast metal partial denture. 

Metal hooks that are visible around the teeth that it holds onto.

 

 

 

If this describes your situation then you should consider dental implants – mini dental implants or traditional. 

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My patient without her upper partial denture in.  She is missing her front three teeth and the tooth behind her canine tooth.

 

 

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4 mini dental implants were placed with minimal surgery (no cutting of the gum, no stitches)  The temporary crown is on the mini dental implant behind the canine tooth (right side of picture).

 

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Temporary crowns in place over the mini dental implants.  My patient gets to leave without her partial denture.  I will let her 'test drive' the temporary crowns for a few weeks.  Any changes we want to make to the look of the crowns can then be communicated to the dental lab that will make the final mini dental implant crowns.  The 'test drive' period also allows me to assess the function and phonetics (how her speach is). 

 

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X ray of the OCO Biomedical mini dental implant used to replace the missing premolar tooth.

 

 

 

 

 

Paresh B Patel Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants

Dental Implants Hickory Boone Wilkesboro Asheville NC 

Healthcare-Associated Infections

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I was asked by Barbara Dunn at Kimberly-Clark (you know the people who make Kleenex, Scott, Huggies, Pull-Ups etc…) to make a post about how to reduce the number of infections at health care facilities. 

For infomation on HAI's go to www.haiwatchnews.com

or click here  Healthcare-Associated Infections

Dental Implants to Replace a Missing Back Molar

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Are you missing a back tooth?  Then you should consider getting a dental implant.  A dental implant acts as the root of the tooth and can allow for a crown to be placed over the implant.  No need to grind down healthy teeth on either side of your missing tooth for a bridge.

Before xray

X ray of my patient showing the missing upper molar tooth.  One option would have been to grind away healthy tooth to create room for a bridge.  The teeth on either side of the missing tooth would have to be drilled on for a 'crown' and that would hold in the bridge.

With a dental implant we can save healthy tooth structure by not having to shape the adjacent natural teeth.  In some cases it can cost less to do a dental implant and crown instead of a bridge.

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Final pan x-ray of a OCO two piece 6mm x 6mm dental implant placed to act as the root of a missing upper molar tooth.

 

 

Healing cap

 

Clinical picture of the same OCO two piece dental implant with a healing cap.  This is the day of placement.  Notice the lack of blood or stitches or the gum having to be cut and pushed back.  This traditional size dental implant is placed in the same fashion as a mini dental implant.  Very little surgery, very little discomfort and post operative pain for the patients.  Because the bone in this case was very soft I decided to use a regular sized traditional two piece dental implant. 

 

 

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If the bone had been dense I could have placed multiple mini dental implants to support the molar crown as shown in this case.  Both solutions work and work well.  It is really a choice for the patient and dentist on what can be done and at what cost (economic, time, and potential discomfort).

 

 

 

This implant will heal for several months (12-16 weeks) before we can 'load' it with a crown.  In the case shown above with the mini dental implants because there was good dense bone I was able to place the crown over the implants in 3 weeks.  The mini implant crown has been in function now for over a year.

I will continue the post to show the abutment (the part of the implant that comes up out of the gum for the crown to attach to) and final porcelain crown.

Paresh B Patel Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants

Dental Implants Hickory Boone Asheville NC

BioHorizons One Piece 3.0 Dental Implant & Laser Lok Two Piece 3.0

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For tight spaces in the esthetic zone where I normally would have placed a one piece 3.0mm dental implant, BioHorizons now has  a two piece Laser Lok 3.0 implant. 

 

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BioHorizons two piece with the Laser Lok microchannels.  These microchannels in the BioHorizons dental implant are stated to allow a physical connective tissue attachement to the implant. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The 3.0 BioHorizons implant also comes in a one piece for immediate load applications.

I have contacted their sales rep Nick Wernimont to get a few of them to see how they work in my hands.  The placement protocol looks simple and straighforward.  Look for a post on the BioHorizons One and Two Piece 3.0 dental implants soon.  I hope to place them for a maxillary missing lateral incisor.

BioHorizons Dental Implants

 

 

 

Paresh B Patel Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants

Dental Implants Hickory Boone Asheville Wilkesboro NC 

Mini Dental Implants to Replace Missing Back Molar Teeth

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Missing a back molar?  Don't want to wear a partial denture?  Have you been told you will need a sinus lift for a traditional implant?

In some cases all of these issues can be solved with a mini dental implant.

 

 

 

 

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X-ray of the missing upper teeth.  Notice on the upper jaw the limited amount of bone that is left.

 

 

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4 OCO crown and bridge head mini dental implants in place to anchor two molar size crowns.  A lot of times Dr.s ask me why are you putting in two mini implants to replace one tooth instead of one larger one?  My answer (best worded by my friend Dr. Chow) is lets replace the upper molar tooth by replacing it with the most anatomically and biologically correct position of the missing roots.  2 or 3 implants to disperse the force the way the body originally had it.

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The 4 mini dental implants are inserted with 2 engaging the palatal(roof of the mouth side) slope of bone.  The other 2 engage the buccal(cheek side of the bone).  This way we avoid the sinus cavity and have primary stability from the day of placement.  This is the original positions of the roots the mini dental implant will replace.  These mini dental implants had over 40ncm of torque day of placement.

 

 

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I often get asked questions on how can patients keep the crowns clean.  Each crown has a 'flossing groove' built into the anatomy.  This will help the patient guide the water pic or floss threader. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Floss in between the mini dental implants to confirm removal of excess cement and to demonstrate to the patient how to use the floss threader or water pic.

 

 

 

 

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Crowns in place and floss removed. 

Implants are not teeth.  The assumption that a dental implant should be the size of the root it replaces should be reexamined.  Titanium alloy provides a level of strength in a smaller size than a tooth root does.  We should place into our patients the minimum amount of foreign substance (titanium dental implants)  required to maximize the vital bone supporting and surrounding the implants.  For a good class on learning how to place implants click here:  Simple Implant Placement Course & Hands on Seminar

 

 

Paresh B Patel Dental Implants Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants

Dental Implants Hickory Boone Asheville NC

Mini Dental Implant Seminar – One Day Hands On Educational Course with 7 hours CE

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 Coming Soon……  

A full day of education to learn the next small big thing in implant dentistry….the mini dental implant.

Easy to place

Easy to restore

Minimal surgery with Maximum return for Dr.'s and Patients

If you have never placed a dental implant then consider starting with a 2.2mm or 2.5mm mini dental implant from OCO Biomedical. 

If you are placing implants and want to sharpen your skill for fixed or removable applications then this course will teach you the logical progression to larger size implants.  Move from the 2.2 and 2.5 micro implants to a real 3.0 Mini Implant.  Then by just changing the final bit (no additional drills) you can move up to a 4.0 or 5.0 one piece or two piece implant. 

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Paresh B Patel Implant Dentistry Charlotte NC

Mini Dental Implants

Dental Implants Hickory Boone Wilkesboro Asheville NC 

One Day Hands On Courses