How many implants required?

[Lucy H]

Hi

I have three missing front teeth and currently wear a plastic plate. I lost these teeth when I was assaulted about six months ago and since then I have been wearing a denture.

I would like to know if I should have two implants and a bridge or three implants and three crowns? My own dentist recommends going for three implants but to be honest from a cost point of view, three implants are out of my budget range.

If I go for two implants and a bridge, what advantages and disadvantages are there over the three implant option. How many implants do you think I need? Could I go for two implants now and later on add another implant when I can afford it?

[Dr Mohsen J. Esfahani]

The main advantages of the two implants and bridge option are:

1. Cheaper as fewer implants are needed.
2. Easier to shape the gum around a bridge than it is to shape around three implant crowns next to each other.
3. May be able to avoid bone grafting if one tooth socket is deficient in bone.


The main advantages of the three implant and three crowns option are:

1. Easier to clean around crowns as they are not joined together.
2. Should one implant fail in the future, only that implant needs treatment and you don't have to worry about losing more than one tooth in that situation.