What Are Mini Implants?
Small Diameter Dental Implant Supported Dentures
Small diameter dental implants are also known as mini implants. For the right candidates, using these implants to support dentures can be a comfortable, natural-looking, optimally functional tooth replacement option. To schedule a consultation with experienced Houston implant dentist Dr. Ronald Konig, please call us at 713-668-2289.
Small diameter implants (SDI) to retain dentures have become more popular over the past few years. If you do not have enough bone for conventional dental implants and/or for different reasons (lack of bone, economic issues, or health issues) or are not interested in bone grafts, oftentimes SDI can be used to anchor your dentures in place.
Some nice advantages of SDI-retained dentures are:
- They will securely anchor dentures in place.
- Minimal recovery time.
- Can be used or "loaded" the same day as placed.
- Economics: significantly lower cost than conventional dental implants.
- Health issues: if you have certain medical conditions, mini dental implants may be a good alternative to traditional dental implants.
A new attachment for these implants is now available. It is the locator attachment, which is superior to the older "o-ring" attachments that anchor the dentures in place.
Uses of Small Diameter Dental Implants
Whereas many practitioners, including Dr. Konig, use these SDI on the upper and lower jaw, Dr. Konig personally feels they are best suited for the lower jaw since the bone is usually more dense, which improves the long term prognosis.
Another interesting use that we often employ the SDI for is as temporary anchoring implants when conventional dental implants are healing. This is usually a 3-month process and the temporary implants can be simply removed after the conventional implants have finished healing. The benefit to you is that you have immediate anchorage or retention when conventional implant cases are be done. This is usually greatly appreciated by our patients!
If you live in or around Houston, Katy, Sugar Land or The Woodlands, Texas, and want to learn more about small diameter dental implant-supported dentures, please contact Ronald W. Konig, DDS, FAGD, LVIF online or call 713-668-2289 to schedule a consultation with our experienced implant dentist.
