Dentures or Full Arch?
Losing most or all of your teeth leaves you with three realistic routes. Here's how a plain denture, a clip-in implant denture and a fixed bridge compare on comfort, food, your jawbone and cost.
Should I Get Full-Arch Implants or Dentures in Hamilton?
If you want teeth that never move and don't cover your palate, full-arch implants are the stronger choice; if you'd rather avoid surgery or keep costs down, a denture still works well for many people. In Hamilton, our full dentures start at £695, dentures that clip onto implants from £8,500 per jaw, and fixed full-arch implants from £12,500 per arch. A free consultation with a CT scan shows which your mouth suits.
The Three Options in a Sentence Each
A full denture is a removable plate of teeth that sits on your gums, held by suction and often a little adhesive. An implant-retained denture is a denture with clips inside that press onto two to four implants, so it stays put but still lifts out. A full-arch bridge is a fixed set of teeth screwed onto four to six implants that only the dentist can remove.
None is the right answer for everybody. A well-made denture can serve someone well for years, and we'll say so if that's what we'd advise. Dr Sharma looks at your health, your bone and your priorities before recommending anything.
What Each Feels Like to Wear
A conventional upper denture covers the roof of your mouth. That can dull the taste of food and the feel of temperature, and some people gag on it. A lower denture tends to be the bigger complaint, because there's less gum for it to grip and the tongue keeps nudging it.
A clip-in implant denture feels much more secure. It still has some flange and plate, but it doesn't lift when you laugh, and sore spots from rubbing become less common.
A fixed bridge feels the closest to having teeth again. On the upper jaw the palate is left open, and there's nothing to take out or put back. Most people say they stop thinking about it within a few weeks.
Fed Up with a Loose Denture?
Book a full-arch consultation in Hamilton. The CT scan is taken on the day.
Food and Conversation
With a loose denture, people quietly change what they eat. Apples get sliced, steak gets swapped for mince, and a crusty roll is torn into bits. Talking can bring its own worries, like a clicking plate or a denture that drops mid-sentence.
Implants change that. A clip-in denture copes with most everyday food once it's clipped down. A fixed bridge lets you bite and chew much as you did with your own teeth, once the healing months are over. With any new set of teeth, speech needs a short spell to settle while the tongue gets used to the new shape.
Your Jawbone Over Time
This is the difference people least expect. The bone that held your teeth slowly shrinks once they've gone, because nothing is stimulating it any more. A denture sits on top of the gum and does nothing to slow that, which is why dentures that fitted well at first gradually loosen and need relining or remaking.
Implants sit inside the bone and pass chewing forces into it, and bone that is used tends to be kept. That helps a fixed bridge stay stable for many years. A clip-in denture keeps its grip better than a conventional one, although the gum between the implants can still change under it, so it needs the odd adjustment.
Comparison Table
| Feature | Full denture | Clip-in implant denture | Fixed full arch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comes out? | Yes | Yes, unclips | No, dentist only |
| Implants needed | None | Usually 2 lower, 4 upper | 4 to 6 per arch |
| Upper palate | Covered | Sometimes reduced | Left open |
| Chewing | Softer foods easier | Most everyday food | Close to natural teeth |
| Bone loss | Carries on | Slowed near implants | Slowed near implants |
| Operation | No | Yes, shorter | Yes, often with sedation |
| Fee, from | £695 | £8,500 per jaw | £12,500 per arch |
| Typical upkeep | Relines, remakes | New clips now and then | Hygiene every 3 months |
Cleaning Each One
A full denture comes out after meals for a rinse and is brushed twice a day, and most people leave it out overnight so the gums can breathe. A clip-in denture is cleaned the same way, and you also brush the implant tops in your mouth. Its nylon clips wear and are swapped at a routine visit.
A fixed bridge is cleaned where it sits, like natural teeth, with a brush and a water flosser underneath. Our hygienist sees you every three months, and from time to time we take the bridge off to clean beneath it. Our guide to life with a full arch has the routine in full.
What It Costs, Now and Later
A denture is the cheapest place to start. A full acrylic denture is from £695, or £495 for an immediate one fitted the day teeth are taken out. Over the years, though, the shrinking gum means relines at £110 and eventually a new denture, perhaps every five to ten years.
A clip-in implant denture is from £8,500 per jaw, with the CT scan at £160 if you need one. Fixed full-arch implants are £12,500, £15,000 or £18,500 per arch, depending on the bridge material, whether you need four implants or six. That covers the CT scan, planning, extractions, implants, guided surgery, temporary and permanent bridges and first-year reviews, with a 5-year guarantee for non-smokers who attend hygiene visits every 3 months. 1 Sedation is extra at £500 per session, and any grafting is quoted in writing.
Our All-on-4 cost guide itemises the full-arch fee.
Which Suits Whom
Most healthy adults can be considered for implants, but a few things weigh heavily:
- Diabetes needs to be well controlled before implant surgery
- Smoking slows healing and raises the chance of an implant failing
- Your bone volume, which the CT scan here measures precisely
- Whether you can keep up three-monthly hygiene visits
A full denture makes sense if you'd rather not have surgery, your budget is tight, or a health condition makes implants risky. A clip-in implant denture suits people whose denture rocks or rubs and who'd like a lower-cost step into implants. A fixed bridge suits those who want teeth that stay in, or whose remaining teeth keep failing. And if some of your own teeth can be saved, that usually comes first. Patients come to us from Motherwell, Wishaw and East Kilbride for the full-arch consultation, which answers this properly.
Questions
This guide is general information, not a diagnosis. A dentist needs to examine you to say what is right for your teeth.