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| Lower Denture Implant Option I |
 This very basic treatment to stabilize a lower denture requires the individual to have a very good bony ridge support. Poor ridges will allow too much lateral movement of the denture and hence all of the force generated to the denture will be transferred to the implants. In some cases this may cause the implants to become overstressed, which will result in their loss.
The first stage of surgery ends with the implants seated flush with the crest of the lower jaw bone . The implants are submerged below the gum tissue for 6 months. The second stage of surgery (after 6 months of healing) ends with a ball snap attachment connecting each implant to the lower dentures. Basic implant service which stabilizes a mobile denture. |
| Lower Denture Implant Option II |
 This should be considered to be the most basic implant support for a lower denture. The denture is still capable of moving in all directions as in Option I. However, the implants are now supporting each other by a bar. Any force hitting one implant will be shared by the other. This implant system is designed to protect the two implant system from receiving too much force. Too much force could overpower the implant/bone interface.
The retention allows considerable denture movement. This Option is the lowest cost implant support available which is engineered to protect the implants from too much force. Bone resorption will continue in areas that are not immediately around the implants. Two implants are joined with a bar to protect the implants from excessive force |
| Lower Denture Implant Option III |
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The retention allows considerably less denture movement. This Option is engineered to provide the denture with less side to side movement while still protecting the implants. If there is good posterior ridge support the implants can be moved farther apart as in the example below. In this case the ridges and the implantbar are quite resistant to lateral movement. The tipping of the denture forward and backward is still quite pronounced at this level..
Three implants are joined with a bar to protect the implants from excessive force |
| Lower Denture Implant Option IV |
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The retention allows no side to side movement and very little tipping of the denture. The bone in the anterior mandible receives enough force to maintain its volume and prevent further bone resorption.
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Four implants allow for very little front to back tipping of the denture. |
| Lower Denture Implant Option V |
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 The force transferred to these five implants keeps the bone from resorbing in the anterior mandible. The long term prognosis with this implant engineering is excellent. The denture flanges and volume of acrylic can be minimized due to the tremendous amount of implant support available |
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Five implants allow for no movement of the denture. |
With three implants joined with a gold bar and attachments the lower denture can now start to have some lateral stability. This should be considered the minimal support for an individual with poor posterior ridge support. The splinted three implants are able to resist this side to side force without jeopardizing the implantbone strength. There is, however, considerable forward and backward tipping of the denture. If the tissues are thin this can still lead to sore spots.
With four implants there is enough stability and strength to the implants to carry a small distal extension of gold to the bar. At this level we can now have only slight soft tissue contact and support at the more distal extensions of the lower jaw. There is very little movement with this combination.
With five implants it is possible to return to a condition which is most like having your own teeth. The gold bar can now be cantilevered to the back of the lower jaw without putting the implants at risk from too much force. There is no soft tissue support. The support and retention is solely maintained by the bar/implant combination. There is no denture movement. 