Full Fixed Dental Restoration After Decades of Tooth Loss

What brought the patient to our clinic?

Our 57-year-old female patient had been living with removable dentures for over thirty years, having lost her natural teeth at a very young age due to advanced periodontal disease. In cases where tooth loss has been present for such an extended period, significant bone loss typically occurs in the jawbones. The patient rightly suspected that she might require extensive bone grafting before receiving a fixed, screw-retained implant-supported restoration.

Diagnosis and Proposed Treatment

At the initial consultation, our oral surgeons—Dr. Balázs Záhonyi and Dr. Dr. Tamás Sass—performed an oral examination and evaluated a CBCT scan. They recommended bone grafting using the patient’s own hip bone, as both the width and height of the jawbone needed to be restored to allow for proper implant placement.

After the healing period and successful bone integration, 8 implants were placed in the upper jaw and 4 in the lower jaw, providing a stable foundation for fully fixed restorations.

How did the procedure go?

Complex bone grafting procedures of this nature are always carried out under general anesthesia in a hospital setting, and they require patience and commitment from the patient during recovery. Fortunately, the patient tolerated the surgery well, and her healing progressed without complications.

Six months after the bone grafting, implant placement was performed, followed by another six-month healing period. Once osseointegration was complete, the prosthetic phase began: we fabricated and placed screw-retained fixed restorations on the implants.

At the final handover of the completed restoration, the patient was moved to tears of joy—an emotional moment shared by our entire clinical team. The smile in the photo speaks for itself.