What Is Full Mouth Reconstruction?
Full mouth reconstruction pulls every problem in your mouth into a single treatment plan. Instead of fixing one tooth at a time, the plan looks at your teeth, gums, bite, and jawbone together and treats them in an order that makes sense. The main goal is healthy, comfortable function, which is what separates it from a smile makeover, a mostly cosmetic treatment.
No two plans look the same. Depending on your exam and imaging, yours may combine tooth extractions, bone grafting, dental implants, and new teeth, and some plans add orthodontics or jaw surgery to correct the bite first.
If only one or two teeth need work, you may not need a full mouth plan at all. A single implant or a bridge could be enough, and your dentist can help you decide which route fits.
Signs You May Need a Full Mouth Plan
A full mouth evaluation may be worth it if several of these sound familiar:
| • | Several failing or broken teeth. Cracked, badly decayed, or loose teeth in more than one area. |
| • | Multiple missing teeth. Gaps in several places that make chewing harder. |
| • | Denture problems. Sore spots, adhesive that never quite does the job, or dentures that slip or no longer fit. |
| • | Tooth loss from decay or gum disease. Losing teeth one after another. |
| • | Jawbone loss. After teeth are lost, the bone that held them gradually shrinks, which can make a denture fit poorly and implants harder to place. |
| • | Worn teeth or a collapsed bite. Teeth that have worn down or shifted until your bite no longer feels right. |
| • | Dental work that keeps failing. Fillings, crowns, or bridges that break or need replacing again and again. |
Having several of these doesn't rule anything out, but it's a good reason to have your whole mouth evaluated at once.
Who Does What on Your Care Team
A reconstruction here usually involves two offices: ours for the surgical work and your restorative dentist's for the final teeth. Some plans bring in an orthodontist, too.
Dr. Anderson and our surgical team handle your evaluation and 3D imaging, extractions, bone grafting, implant placement, and corrective jaw surgery when a case calls for it. He completed his oral and maxillofacial surgery residency at Carle Foundation Hospital and is on the medical staff at St. Luke's and Saint Alphonsus.
Your restorative dentist, or a prosthodontist (a dentist who focuses on replacement teeth), designs and places your final crowns, bridges, or full-arch teeth. If your teeth need to move into a better position first, an orthodontist handles that part. We coordinate timing with each office, so the surgical steps line up with what comes next.
How Full Mouth Reconstruction Works, Step by Step
Full mouth reconstruction happens in phases, and most plans follow this general order:
| 1. | Consultation and 3D imaging. Dr. Anderson examines your mouth and reviews your health history, and a 3D CBCT scan shows your bone, nerves, and sinuses in detail. |
| 2. | A written treatment plan. We map out each phase with your dentist and go over your alternatives and expected fees before anything starts. |
| 3. | Extractions and infection control. The surgical work begins with removing teeth that can't be saved and clearing any infection, so later steps start from healthy tissue. |
| 4. | Rebuilding the foundation. Where bone is too thin, bone grafting adds support, and in the upper back jaw, a sinus lift adds bone beneath the sinus. |
| 5. | Implant placement. We place the implants that will anchor your new teeth, sometimes on the same day teeth are removed. |
| 6. | Healing. Over several months, the implants bond with your jawbone, which is how dental implants heal and why final teeth come later. Temporary teeth often fill the gap in the meantime. |
| 7. | Final teeth and maintenance. Your restorative dentist places your final teeth, and regular checkups help keep them in good shape. |
Your plan may not follow this exact order. Some steps happen at the same visit, while others need their own healing time, such as a bone graft that has to heal before implants go in.
Procedures That May Be Part of Your Plan
Your plan will include only the procedures your exam and imaging show you need. That may be just a few of the ones below.
Tooth Extractions and Socket Preservation
Some teeth are too broken down, loose, or infected to rebuild. After removing one, we can fill the empty socket with bone graft material, a step called socket preservation. It's meant to limit the bone shrinkage that normally follows an extraction and help keep future implant options open.Bone Grafting, Sinus Lift, and Ridge Augmentation
These procedures rebuild bone so implants have enough to hold onto. A bone graft adds bone where it has thinned, and a sinus lift adds height in the upper back jaw. Ridge augmentation restores the width or height of the bony ridge that once held your teeth. Graft material may come from your own body, a human donor, an animal source, or a synthetic substitute, and some grafts can be placed at the same time as implants.Pre-Prosthetic Surgery
Pre-prosthetic surgery prepares your mouth for new teeth or a denture. It can involve smoothing sharp or uneven bone left after extractions, reshaping the ridge, or removing extra bone or gum tissue so your new teeth can sit properly.Dental Implants for One or Several Teeth
Not every plan replaces a whole arch. When healthy teeth remain, our team places dental implants in Boise and Meridian to fill the gaps around them. A single implant can replace one missing tooth, and two or more can support a bridge.Full-Arch Options
Corrective Jaw Surgery
Sometimes a bite problem comes from the position of the jaws rather than the teeth. When that's the case, your plan may include orthodontics and corrective jaw surgery before your final teeth are made, so they can be designed around the corrected jaw position.Fixed Teeth vs. Removable Implant Dentures
The biggest everyday difference is whether you can take the teeth out yourself. Fixed full-arch teeth are screwed or cemented onto implants, so they stay in when you eat, talk, and sleep, and only your dental team removes them. You clean them in place, using tools such as an interdental brush to reach around the implants.
Removable overdentures snap onto implants and come out each day, which makes it easier to clean the gums and implants underneath. They can add lip and cheek support when a lot of bone has been lost, and they're usually simpler to repair. The attachments that hold them in place wear over time and need periodic replacement.
Neither one is right for everyone. The choice comes down to how much bone you have, how you feel about removing your teeth, how easily you can clean, and your budget.
Are You a Candidate?
Before surgery, we'll review your health history, medications, and scans. Bring a list of everything you take, including over-the-counter medicines and supplements. If you have certain heart conditions or a joint replacement, tell us, since you may need antibiotics before surgery.
If you have diabetes, blood sugar control matters most. Poorly controlled diabetes is linked to slower implant bonding and more failures, while well-controlled diabetes carries complication rates similar to those of healthy patients. That makes dental implants for diabetic patients a realistic option for many people.
Age alone isn't a barrier, either. An international implant consensus group concluded that advanced age by itself doesn't rule out treatment. With dental implants for seniors, overall health matters more than age. If surgery isn't the right fit for you, a conventional denture or partial denture is still an option, and your dentist can walk you through it.
Anesthesia and Comfort
We numb the treatment area with local anesthesia, and sedation options such as IV sedation are available if you'd like to be more relaxed. We'll decide on the approach together at your consultation, based on your procedures and your health. Corrective jaw surgery is the exception, since it's typically done under general anesthesia in a hospital or surgical setting.
If you have sedation, plan to have someone drive you home, and follow the pre-anesthesia instructions we give you. Afterward, you may have some swelling, bruising, and soreness, and soft foods help while the area heals. If fear has kept you from dental care, let us know, since sedation is one way we help people with dental anxiety get through treatment.
How Long Does Full Mouth Reconstruction Take?
Most full mouth reconstructions take months rather than weeks, though there's no single timeline. Much of that time goes to healing, because grafted bone and implants both need time to become solid before your final teeth can be made.
Plans with several extractions, grafting in more than one area, or orthodontics and jaw surgery take longer, since each phase builds on the one before it. We'll give you an estimated timeline for each phase, including any temporary teeth, so you can plan around work, travel, and family events.
What Affects the Cost?
The cost of full mouth reconstruction depends on how much your mouth needs, so it varies a lot from person to person. The biggest factors are the number of extractions and implants, whether you need bone grafting or a sinus lift, the type of final teeth, anesthesia, and imaging. Your restorative dentist's fees for the final teeth are usually separate from ours.
Before treatment starts, we'll go over the fees for each phase and your alternatives, so you can compare options before you commit. Our team works with your dental insurance to get the most reimbursement your plan allows for covered procedures, so bring your insurance information to your consultation.
Caring for Your Results
Clean around your new teeth every day with the brushes and tools your dental team recommends, and keep your professional cleanings and checkups so small problems get caught early. Avoid chewing ice or hard candy. If you grind your teeth, wear a night guard if one is recommended, since a study of full-arch implant teeth linked grinding and skipping a night guard to more chipping.
Implants tend to hold up well over the long term, but the teeth attached to them take daily wear. Chips or worn parts sometimes need repair even with good care, and most of those repairs can be made without replacing the whole set.
