Stephen Case Study
| ARCH Sectional / partial upper | IMPLANTS 4 · strong AP spread | RESTORATION Nano-ceramic on Ti bar | WEAR MODE Fixed · 6-month recall |
A sectional FlexOnX that kept the teeth that were still working.
Stephen still had a stable group of crowned teeth on one side and a usable bite on that side. The rest of the arch was not going to recover. The plan was not to clear the remaining teeth for a conventional full-arch zirconia bridge. It was to place four implants with a solid anterior-posterior spread and restore the missing span as a FlexOnX sectional prosthesis — fixed in the mouth, retrievable in the office.
The story
After the implants healed, records followed the same analog path used across FlexOnX cases: spacers on the abutments, a crown-and-bridge-quality polyvinyl impression (not a loose denture wash), a vertical-dimension record, and a stable bite. The laboratory returned a nano-ceramic overlay on a titanium bar. Esthetics were strong out of the box.
Home care was going to be the long-term risk, so the intaglio and the facial emergence were designed with extra channels so a Waterpik could reach under the span. Delivery was set as a fixed concept: Stephen does not seat and unseat the bridge himself. He returns about every six months so the team can remove it, clean it, and coach the hygiene that keeps the tissue healthy.
What this case was built to do
- Give him a fixed bite — not a partial he takes in and out.
- Keep the remaining stable teeth and the occlusion they already provided.
- Make under-the-bridge hygiene possible even though he is not removing the prosthesis at home.
- Put a recall rhythm in writing: the case only works if he comes back.
- Do it at a price point that made the treatment realistic
“The end result is we were able to give Stephen something that’s fixed. It’s not a partial. And most importantly, we gave it to him at an affordable price point.”
— Dr. Mark Whitefield, case narration
FOR PATIENTS
IF YOU WANT YOUR TEETH BACK
You do not always have to lose every remaining tooth to get a fixed result.
Stephen kept the teeth that were healthy and already crowned. The missing span was rebuilt so it stays in place when he eats and speaks.
He does not handle the bridge at home. His job is daily Waterpik and salt-water flushing under the span, and showing up for recall so the team can take it off and clean what he cannot see.
FOR DENTISTS
IF YOU PLACE IMPLANTS
Indication: sectional / two-thirds arch when a stable posterior stop remains. Four implants in a usable AP spread were enough for this span.
Restorative: spacer + master PVS (crown-and-bridge standard, not a denture slop impression) → VDO / mush-bite → lab nano-ceramic on titanium bar.
FRA housings, no screws. Wear mode was clinician-retrievable / patient-fixed because self-removal was not realistic.
Engineer Waterpik channels at design. Recall every six months is part of the prescription, not an afterthought
