Why Are Dental Implants So Expensive

The advent of dental implants have given patients a new world in treatment options today to replace missing teeth. However, this deceptively simple dental option requires skill in order to properly execute and restore in a manner that would be functional for you for many years. This article will explain why implants cost what they do as well as why you should look for a dental professional who has extensive training.

What Is a Tooth Implant?

Dental Implant

The components of an implant include:

  • The implant body or fixture, which is placed in the bone
  • The implant crown
  • An abutment on to which the implant crown is connected

Each of these components have its own associated fee. To use the analogy of hanging a picture on a wall, these are the nail, picture hanger, and picture. Sometimes the picture hanger (abutment) and the picture (crown) come together as one piece. The implant fixture can cost anywhere between $1,600 – $3,000; the implant crown $1,200 – $3,000; and the abutment $275 – $400.

How Much Does a Tooth Implant Cost?

There are various dental implant companies available and depending upon which company’s implant is used, the cost can fluctuate. In most cases, these costs would be your out-of-pocket expense. Your insurance company may cover a portion of the expense and will vary depending upon your dental plan. Cost of the procedure may be higher depending upon your circumstance and multiple implants will increase the cost.

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How Much Do Multiple Dental Implants Cost?

Multiple Dental Implants

However, in order to restore three teeth with two implants, a pontic or “dummy tooth” would be needed connecting the two implants. Cost may vary depending upon your individual needs, additional associated costs, number of teeth units needed, and materials used.

How Much Do Full Dental Implants Cost?

have dentures and do not like them.

You can expect to pay between $7,000 – $20,000 per arch for implant supported dentures, in addition to the cost of the dental implants. This type of restoration usually requires between 4 to 6 implants per arch. Most commonly, hybrid dentures are made for the lower jaw because the lower dentures tend to be the least retentive due to muscle movements of the cheeks and tongue.

Often times, an additional treatment denture or duplicate denture is needed to determine proper implant placement. Although there are many benefits to this type of denture, the down side is that food and debris tend to collect under the denture between the implants and require meticulous home care. Only your dentist will be able to unscrew these dentures from the implants and should do so at least once a year for maintenance.

A Lower-Cost Alternative to Full-Mouth Dental Implants

The Dental Implant Process

Radiographic Imaging

Because an implant needs to be placed into a three dimensional space, a CBCT would allow for the proper implant planning for position, depth, and angulation within that space. This helps fulfill the old adage, “Measure twice, cut once.” Once the implant position is determined from the CBCT image, a surgical guide is made providing a precise template for the placement of the implant.

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Teeth Extraction

Dental Implant

Grafting

There may be a need for grafting after extraction or implant placement. Bone grafting is a procedure where materials that will stimulate bone fill placed into the surgical site to fill in spaces that would otherwise be filled in with gum tissue. In the case of extractions, bone grafting material is placed into the extraction socket to prevent collapse of the socket walls (ridge preservation), promote bone healing, promote bone fill, and support blood clot formation. During implant placement, there may be a need to fill in spaces (arrow) or augment the amount of bone around the implant.

The cost for bone grafting for ridge preservation procedure can range between $700 – $1,600 per site. Grafting procedures for the purpose of filling in voids, can range between $625 – $950 per site. The cost of bone material may vary depending upon the source of bone and how much is needed, but generally range between $600 – $800 per site. These include cadaver, cow, or synthetic. Harvesting your own bone is another option and can range between $500 – $1600.

barrier membrane (C) may be needed to cover and prevent healing gum tissues from infiltrating the graft material and causing the material to be rejected. These membranes can range between $420 – $1100 per site.

In some instances, implants may be needed in the posterior portion of the upper jaw, where the sinus may be large and therefore there may not be enough bone height to place implants. In these cases, a sinus lift surgery may be needed to raise up the floor of the sinus and build more bone either before or at the time of implant placement. Two ways in executing this procedure are either via internal lift or lateral window. Sinus grafting procedures can average between $2,100 – $4,100 in addition to the cost of materials, which range between $600 – $800 per site.

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may also be needed to build up the amount of gum either for aesthetic reasons or to protect the longevity of the implant. These can range between $400 – $1,500 depending upon the goal of the procedure.

Do Dental Implants Work for Everyone?

Implants do not have a 100% success rate, however there are several aspects that should be taken into consideration to ensure a successful outcome. As we see in the x-ray image on the left, the implant and restoration are stable, however there is bone loss around the implant. Therefore there may be a successful restoration, but we can question whether there is overall success. Or, we may have success with both the implant and the restoration, but there may be an esthetic failure, as seen on the right.

We also know that excessive biting forces placed on implants can lead to implant failure. Implant failure can range from fracture of the restoration, screw breakage, implant fracture, or de-integration of the implant.

What Kind of Dentist Does Tooth Implants?

As mentioned above, the total cost of your implant can vary depending upon whether ancillary surgical procedures are needed to successfully place your implant. The ideal professional who should be placing your implant is a dental surgeon, either an oral surgeon or periodontist, both of whom have had multiple years of formal surgical training beyond dental school. Of the two, a periodontist is additionally trained in gum tissue management and plastic surgery of the gums. As far as restoring your implant, either your general dentist who has had training in implants or, preferably, a prosthodontist, would be your ideal professional. There is, however, a small group of professionals who have been trained in both periodontics and prosthodontics. These dual trained professionals, like Dr. Scott Nakamura, understand both the surgical as well as the restorative aspects of dental implants.

periodontics and prosthodontics evaluate you for your dental implant and give you the smile you deserve.

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