Zirconia is Natural, Strong, and Beautiful
Zirconia is rising in popularity as in implant dentistry as the go-to material for implant supported crowns and bridges. And rightfully so! Zirconia is not only one of the strongest materials available for making crowns and bridges, but also the most natural.
Zirconia bridges look and feel like natural teeth. They require no plastic palate or gums in order to be fixed to implants, unlike dentures. They also are cleaned with brushing twice daily, like organic teeth.
With CAD design and 3D milling, they can be designed with laser-point precision with the grooves and contours of natural teeth, giving them a stunning appearance.
Additionally, zirconia bridges are very strong. Made from zirconium oxide, they are significantly stronger than porcelain and even a number of metal alloys. With zirconia, you can eat solid foods such as apples and steak that may be otherwise difficult with other types of replacement teeth. It is also common for zirconia to last the rest of a patient’s life.
While implant supported dentures are a viable option for full mouth or full arch dental implants, zirconia brigdes are advantageous in several ways.
First, zirconia bridges are non-removable, while implant supported dentures are removable. The main reason for this difference is hygiene. Zirconia can be brushed like natural teeth. Therefore, it doesn’t need to be removed from the implants. In contrast, implant supported dentures need to be cleaned like traditional dentures due to their acrylic material, which is more absorbent. Therefore, implant dentures need to be soaked in solution overnight in order to be properly cleaned.
Zirconia is also stronger, feels more natural, and can be fixed to a larger number of dental implants.
Zirconia has several advantages over All on 4. For one thing, it is more durable. All on 4 can be made from a variety of materials, but most of the time it is made from acrylic. Acrylic is the same material used to make dentures and is therefore significantly more brittle and prone to cracking.
Full arch zirconia bridges also have 2-10 more implants on average per arch. Moreover, they don’t have any overhanging ridge that would otherwise irritate your gums.
Like zirconia bridges, All on 4 is non-removable. However, because they are often made from acrylic, this is not necessarily an advantage. Because it’s an acrylic prosthetic All on 4 is more absorbent to liquid and bacteria. However, because it is screwed onto implants, the prosthetic can’t be removed and soaked in solution. Therefore it is more likely to be compromised by harmful bacteria underneath the ridge.
With all of these advantages, one might think that zirconia is more expensive than All on 4. However, the opposite is true. According to survey data on the cost of dental implants in Texas, zirconia is $8,000 less expensive on average per arch!
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