Is "posterior tooth replacement" the same as implants? PTR is where they put pins in holes bored in your jaw!

Sadly I now have to contemplate "Posterior Tooth Replacement" for 4 teeth in a row in my upper side jaw (with more to follow as time takes its toll) at an estimated cost of £2,000 here in the U.K. Has anyone experience of this bone drilling %26amp; pin fitting procedure (from a patients,NOT the dentists point of view? Sounds horrendous but just how bad is it? Furthermore what about the living with the bridge piece afterwards? e.g:- Does it stay in place, does it irritate when particles get below it,(as they surely must),can it be removed O.K. for cleaning at night, etc, etc?


My only alternative is an upper denture but these have to have a plate across the palate and of course gravity wants to make it fall out - an unpalatable thought (pun very much intended!).


Serious answers only please! (some of the flippant answers on Yahoo Questions can be mildly funny but the majority are a waste


of space and time but I suppose can't be filtered out so we're stuck with them unfortunately for all

Is "posterior tooth replacement" the same as implants? PTR is where they put pins in holes bored in your jaw!
Two separate questions here -- implants versus PTR, and bridge versus partial.





You know about the partial. It attaches to adajcent teeth by wire clips, and rests on the gum. It moves, stuff does get under it, and it can drop from the upper.





A bridge is attached by anchors to crowns placed on abutting teeth. The bridge does not rest on the gum, does not move and does not really have much problem with trapped food particles.





An implant is a metal screwpost (usually silver) surgically implanted in the jaw (lower) or bony ridge (upper).





A crown is permanently attached to the impant, and a bridge may be permanently attached to it.





You can easily see why the implant + bridge is much preferred over partials which are at best functional and at worst a real drag of slipping, pinching, dropping, and it really is hard to fit well, usually requiring additional castings (relines) to better fit the profile of the gums and palate (for uppers). Even then, at its best fit, food will still get between the partial and the gums and/or palate.





I'm not familiar with PTR. I do know pins are routinely inserted into existing tooth bases (not bone) when a substantial part of the tooth has been lost. Pins can be employed in vital teeth or in teeth which have undergone root canals.





Perhaps PTR is a remedy for back jaw areas where implants cannot be placed. I know from personal experience that there is a limit on how far back on the jaw an implant may be emplaced.





Hope this helps. If you can afford it, go with the implants and bridges. I'm saving money for mine, and all I can tell you about my partial is they have long ago become permanent fixtures in my medicine chest shelf!!! I hated them.
Reply:They are 2 different things. Implants are meant to stay in your mouth as a permanent solution to the problem. The ptr solution is ok, but they can be removed a lot more easily becasue they are opnly held in with tiny little metal pins.
Reply:Sadly the bilge you are getting is, factually, all wrong but you did say you wanted a PATIENTS' point of view.


I can't understand it when you have access to FREE dental advice from private dentists worldwide you specifically state you want a layman's opinion from a bloke next-door????


Anyway best of luck and I'm sure you know which are the serious answers here!!!



konq-bugs