Frequently Asked Questions

The first Confident Smile™ bridge is made from reinforced PMMA. This non-metal material is lightweight, strong, has slight flex to absorb forces during the initial healing, and is extremely kind to the soft tissues as you heal. 

The first Natural Teeth™ bridge is made from solid Prettau zirconia. This material is extremely durable and highly esthetic. The hardness of the material makes it resistant to fracturing or chipping. The smooth, non-porous and biocompatible surface makes it resistant to stains and it won’t absorb odors or attract plaque and bacteria.

Most patients who have been told they are not candidates for traditional dental implant options are eligible for Natural Teeth™. The conventional method of placing dental implants into the bone may require complicated bone grafting, resulting in 6-9 months of healing time. The Confident Smile™ procedure uses the front area of the jaw where the bone is denser, and we angle the back implants to avoid the sinus cavities. This placement strategy makes for a much less invasive procedure, avoids the needs for costly and time consuming bone grafts, and provides a solid foundation for your teeth in one visit.

The All-on-4® procedure, as its name implies, uses 4 implants in each jaw to provide support to a titanium reinforced plastic or acrylic bridge. Unfortunately, if 4 implants is not adequate for a given patient and one implant fails, the entire process has to be redone. The old adage applies:  “All on 4, none on 3!” 

Confident Smile™ uses typically 6-8 implants per arch. There are rare instances where we will place only 4 implants but this is not the norm. During your examination and plan review will discuss how many implants you need and why. In addition, Natural Teeth™ is reinforced with a nonmetal, lightweight substructure to provide gentle shock absorption and a natural feel.

Natural Teeth™ is a permanent implant-supported bridge to replace all of your missing teeth. It is the strongest, most functional, and aesthetic nanoceramic available. It provides exceptional rigidity while still having a slight flex to absorb stress. This combination results in an incredibly durable, beautiful tooth replacement option that will both look and feel like natural teeth.