Have you experienced the loss of one or more teeth in your lower jaw and struggled with the inconveniences that can come with dentures? If so, there is a solution to provide a full-arch restoration of your lower jaw in just one day. Trefoil is a recent procedure quickly increasing in demand throughout the dental industry, as more and more patients are eager to learn about the process and treatment potential for their needs.
What Is Trefoil™?
Trefoil is a time-efficient prosthetic that both grants a fixed full-arch restoration of the lower jaw and offers rehabilitation on the same day as surgery. Designed as a system of three implants per arch, it allows for the immediate function of your lower jaw’s teeth and can be adjusted for a precise fit.
How Does The Process Work?
Because every case and, therefore, every arch is unique, we must first ascertain the patient’s specific needs in a consultation (a CT scan may be employed). Once the evaluation is complete, the remainder of the process moves quickly.
During surgery, the Trefoil framework is fitted over three carefully positioned implants to fix the restoration in place. A titanium bar remains in place throughout the recovery period, in order to leave your soft tissue undisturbed while it heals.
Who Is A Candidate For Trefoil™?
As said, Trefoil is a procedure only for the lower jaw. It does not cover missing teeth in both the upper and lower jaw as the All-On-4® Treatment Concept would.
When evaluated by Dr. Chad Boustany, potential candidates must have a jaw structure capable of fitting a predetermined implant position. Patients whose anatomical structures would make surgery difficult (“V”-shaped jaws, a narrow jawbone, etc) may not qualify for Trefoil even if they met the criteria for All-On-4.
Edentulous patients (people missing all or most of their teeth) are the priority of this treatment. Similarly, those with a lower jaw full of teeth may be a candidate for All-On-4 but not Trefoil.
The Benefits Of Trefoil™
• Affordability – This is the main benefit of Trefoil. Compared to All-On-4 treatment, which can use 4 or more implants, Trefoil only uses a prefabricated bar, acrylic titanium prosthesis, and takes fewer appointments to finish the process.
• Stability – The Trefoil implant provides superior bite force (equal to All-On-4) as well as greater security since the prosthesis is screwed down to the implants. Best of all, it takes much less time for the improved finished teeth to be usable. Patients can have their new permanent teeth within a few days of surgery.
• Shorter chair time – Patients are in and out of our office quicker than cases with conventional treatments, due to both the smaller number of components involved in Trefoil.
• Simplified restorative workflow – Thanks to the titanium bar, we can perform the surgery with maximum efficiency and clear the patient in significantly less time.
• Adjustability & comfort – The Trefoil prosthesis is adjustable to the smallest inaccuracy in a patient’s lower jaw, allowing for optimal comfort.