Telescopic Crowns and Bridges
The telescopic crown also known as the german crown was developed in Germany and is even now one of the most used dental procedure by us to construct removable dentures. Note that 99 % of the telescopic dentures worldwide are being made in Germany.
Increased Chewing Power up to 300 %
Some of the benefits of the telescopic overdentures include the prevention of bone loss, esthetic appeal, improved speech (when compared with other types of dentures), proper jaw alignment, and improved chewing efficiency. These overdenture systems can last a lifetime and increase chewing power by up to 300%.Periodontitis is a dreaded oral disease that causes the gums to recede, loosening teeth, and eventually leading to loss of teeth. The telescopic denture is is best suited to restore new teeth for the periodontal patients. It consists of a double crown system know as “the telescopic”, the procedure involves fitting the remaining natural teeth with inner metal crowns, followed by outer crowns as part of an over denture that can be removed by the patient.This technique ensures that bite stress is distributed evenly between each tooth, protecting the remaining teeth and the end result looks quite natural. This technique is also suitable for cases of missing back molars.
Low Follow-Up Costs
The probability that a patient will have kept all teeth 10 years after insertion is 80%. The telescope double crown system is a versatile and successful way of achieving the long-term restoration of the partially edentulous jaw. Insertion and removal of the denture and routine oral hygiene are easy to perform, even for patients with limited manual dexterity. As a full-arch reconstruction, the telescope crown denture system enables easy adjustment, modification, and relining with low follow-up costs.
The probability that a patient will have kept all teeth 10 years after insertion is 80%. The telescope double crown system is a versatile and successful way of achieving the long-term restoration of the partially edentulous jaw. Insertion and removal of the denture and routine oral hygiene are easy to perform, even for patients with limited manual dexterity. As a full-arch reconstruction, the telescope crown denture system enables easy adjustment, modification, and relining with low follow-up costs.
- the primary crowns or caps made of precious or non precious dental alloys that will be cemented on the prepped teet
- the secondary crowns (dental alloys) that are slipping over the primary caps and thus maintaining the bridge through sliding friction tight on the teeth. The secondary crowns have facings (surfaces) of acrylic resin with ceramic filler
- (the framework made out of non precious dental alloy is embedded in plastic (acrylic resin) and supports the acrylic teeth which will replace the own missing teeth. )
Pros
- replace missing teeth
- improved appearance compared to clasp retained partial dentures
- improve chewing ability
- provides support to the periodontal structures
- cheaper than comparable implant sustained bridges
- can be easily fabricated and applied when there are at least two or three teeth left on the jaw. Ideally it would be fitted on 4 to 6 teeth to achieve best results
- does not need clasps or other visible metallic parts on the front teeth
- the bridge sits tight although it can be easily removed in order to practice the regular mouth hygiene
- prevents future tooth loss. The secondary framework can prevent further tooth loss especially when teeth are weakened by periodontitis (gum disease)
- the dual support on teeth and gums will distribute the chewing forces equally onto the teeth and gums thus preventing the teeth from overloading. Overloading is one of the most frequent cause of tooth loss
- long life expectancy. Our experience shows that telescopic dentures inserted on 4 and more teeth have an average lifespan of at least 10 years and often more than that
- best suited for patients who do not want or can not have implant surgery due to anxiety, high costs for implants, diseases or medication that will not allow the insertion of implants
- maintenance, repairs and extension can be easily done at low costs
- in case of tooth loss there is no need to make a new bridge. The framework can be easily extended within minutes. A fixed bridge or an implant supported bridge would need an expensive complete renewal.
Con
- under circumstances healthy teeth need to be prepped thus resulting in loss of healthy tooth substance. This may apply for fixed bridges as well
- it needs to be taken out of the mouth at least once a day for cleaning. This may be bothersome for some patient
- wearing a removable denture might be hard to overcome psychologically, giving a sense of ageing
- the telescopic crowns are slightly larger (bulky) than similar ceramic crowns
- requires more appointments for completion when compared to fixed bridges
- it often requires a palatine (roof of the mouth) metal bow in the upper jaw that spans across the palate, and in the lower jaw a thin metal bow behind the front teeth
- at the beginning it may look expensive than comparable fixed bridges. But seen on a long term basis due to low follow-up costs it is definitely the best choice