Components for permanent removable and adjustable dentures and bridges
OwnerBernard Weissmaninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A dental prosthesis foundation capable of being finished or adjusted or repaired and which may be assembled and adjusted to variable jaw ridge sizes, and formed with self-curing hardened resins. The foundation supports prosthetic teeth and is permanently but removably secured to the jaw by implants embedded in hard dental tissue, such as tooth stubs or bones. The dentures can be readily repaired or adjusted for changes in the jaw of the patient, by chairside techniques available to dentists. The foundation can also be adjusted to changes in size and shape of ridges in the jawbones for more comfortable use of the dentures secured on such prostheses.
Claims18
A method of forming in situ a resiliently lined foundation for a rigid prosthetic denture, of the type removably secured to permanently implanted dental support posts embedded into a patient's jaw, where the support-posts each include a shank secured to the patient's jaw and a support portion extending outwardly longitudinally and laterally from the shank and beyond the patients jaw surface, and where the concave support undersurface of the denture has substantial space for additional support material to mate with the support portions, the method comprising the steps of:
- embedding in hard dental tissue at least two additional screw-ended dental posts at locations distant from each other but on the same jaw, to form a series of implanted indexing guide elements in the mouth of the patient, the indexing posts each having an exposed portion extending beyond the gum of the patient, the exposed portion having a shape that permits smooth and easy insertion into a socket in the foundation;
- forming through the concave support surface of the denture foundation indexing sockets for the series of indexing implanted guide elements, at locations intended to mate with the guide posts when the denture is properly secured in the mouth, the indexing sockets and exposed indexing post portions having shapes wherein the portion distal from the gum is smaller than the portion adjacent the gum;
- placing portions of curable dental resin material into the concave support portion of the denture and placing the denture onto a form selected from the group consisting of the patient's jaw bone ridge and a model of the patient's jaw bone ridge including the dental support and indexing posts, to mold the curable resin so that it cures to form a tight fit around the jawbone ridge and support posts, and where the cured resin is sufficiently resilient to permit easy manual removal and reinsertion by the patient of the dental prosthesis;
- the dental prosthesis also being readily relined if needed, by chair side techniques by a dentist, without loss of proper fit and placement.
A rigid prosthetic denture foundation, of the type removably secured to permanently implanted dental support posts embedded into a patient's jaw, where the support posts each include a shank secured to the patient's jaw and a support portion extending outwardly longitudinally and laterally from the shank and beyond the patients jaw surface, and a concave support undersurface of the denture, the improvement comprising:
- a resilient foundation liner formed in situ, of a resilient resin, within the concave portion, the resilient liner defining support sockets sized and shaped to firmly grip the support posts and to rest upon the gum ridge in the patient's jaw;
- the concave support portion of the denture having indexing sockets for the series of indexing anchored guide elements, at locations intended to mate with the guide posts when the denture is properly placed in the mouth, and the sockets being defined by inserts of rigid structural material secured into each socket and embedded in the resilient resin;
- the dental prostheses thereby being readily relined by chair side techniques by a dentist, without loss of proper fit and placement.
A substantially rigid, removable foundation for a dental prosthesis which can be formed in situ in the mouth of a patient and supported by a plurality of implanted shafts, each shaft having a first end portion anchored to rigid dental material in the mouth, and a second retaining end portion comprising a multi-faceted holding member and a final threaded member extending therefrom;
- the foundation comprising:
- at least one longitudinal connecting bar extending between two implanted shafts;
- at least one extension unit directly supported on the second retaining portion of each of the plurality of shafts;
- each extension unit comprising a mounting portion removably but nonrotatably engaging the retaining portion of its respective shaft;
- and a side portion comprising at least a pair of arms forming at least one slot therebetween;
- one portion of the connecting bar being engaged and held in the slot of each extension unit, thereby interconnecting two extension units;
- a hardened resin material encapsulating the removable foundation, thereby forming a reinforced encapsulated foundation, the encapsulating resin being formed from a curable resin that expands upon hardening;
- and
- a locking cap for removably securing the extension unit to the final threaded member of an implanted shaft and thus locking the foundation to the implanted shaft when the cap is secured to the retaining end, the cap being formed from a polymer that is nonadherent to the encapsulating resin, and that is relatively soft and flexible relative to the material forming the implanted shafts;
- whereby the rigid foundation is an integral unit that can be readily removed from and replaced onto the implanted shafts, and a prosthetic denture can be secured thereto.
A dental support implant for being implanted into the jawbone comprising;
- a shaft having first threaded end portion adapted to anchor the shaft into rigid dental material selected from the group consisting of tooth stubs and bone matrix;
- a prosthesis engaging member portion for engaging a dental prosthesis after the shaft is anchored into the rigid dental material, the prosthesis engaging member comprising a flattened spheroidal portion, having a major spherical diameter transverse to the axis of the implant, the spheroidal portion also defining a slot for connecting to a driving tool for driving the screw end into the rigid dental material;
- a flange member extending transversely from the proximal end of the shaft, and having a substantially flat surface facing towards the spheroidal portion;
- and a neck portion, located intermediate the flange and the spheroidal portion, having a diameter smaller than the major spherical diameter and of the flange.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.