Same-Day Teeth, Explained

What the Phrase Means

Same-day teeth go by several marketing names, including "teeth in a day" and "smile in a day". All describe full-arch implant treatment in which a fixed temporary bridge is secured to the implants at the same appointment they are placed. You might come in with failing teeth or wearing a denture, and you leave with teeth that are screwed in place. There is no removable denture to wear while you heal.

This is possible because implants that grip good bone firmly can support a light, carefully balanced temporary bridge straight away. The bridge splints them into one unit, so chewing forces are spread across all of them while bone grows onto their surface.

What It Does Not Mean

What you leave with is a sturdy temporary bridge, not the finished teeth. It is designed to look natural and to cope with softer food, and it is intentionally lighter and simpler than what comes next. The permanent bridge is designed from a fresh digital scan after the implants have fully integrated, usually around three months on, and that is the one built for the long term.

Nor does the whole treatment happen in a day. The consultation, CT scan and planning come before, and the final bridge comes after. What the single day covers is the stage people most fear dragging on: the extractions, the implant placement and the toothless gap in between.

Who It Suits

• Anyone about to lose most or all of their upper or lower teeth, or already living with a full denture
• Bone that can grip the implants firmly on surgery day, something your CT scan confirms in advance
• Healthy gums, or gum disease brought under control first
• Non-smokers, or smokers prepared to stop, since smoking is the largest avoidable threat to healing

The large majority of full-arch patients are suitable. Whether the fixed teeth can go on that day comes down to your bone: its quality, and how firmly each implant holds once it is placed. Where the bone needs more time, we let the implants heal protected and add the fixed teeth a little later, and your pathway fee is unchanged. Dr Riaz will tell you at the consultation which route to expect, and your written plan explains the alternative. Even so, fixed teeth on the day can only be confirmed once the implants have been placed.¹

One Tooth on the Same Day

A lost front tooth feels like an emergency of its own. If the bone and gum are suitable, the implant can go into the socket at the extraction visit and a temporary crown can be attached that day, so nobody sees a gap. That crown is kept just out of contact with the opposing teeth during healing, and the permanent one follows later. When placing an implant straight away would not be safe, a bonded temporary bridge or a small denture fills the space. The implant and final crown are from £2,250.²

The Day Itself

• Beforehand: Dr Riaz plans the implant positions on your CT scan, and your temporary bridge can be prepared from the same plan. On the Premium pathway, a custom surgical guide is also 3D printed from it.
• Sedation: alongside local anaesthetic, most people choose IV sedation with Dr Imran Riaz (£500 a session) and recall very little.
• Surgery: any remaining teeth are removed, between four and six MegaGen AnyRidge implants go in (guided by the R2 template if you are on Premium), and the stability of each one is measured. When the readings are good, the temporary bridge goes on and the bite is balanced.
• Home: with a companion, written soft-food advice and a number to call if anything worries you.

For an hour-by-hour account, read our implant surgery day guide.

The Months That Follow

• Soft food for roughly three months while the implants heal
• Gentle cleaning around the temporary teeth using the small brushes we supply
• Reviews of healing and your bite
• A digital scan for the permanent bridge, followed by the fitting
• Hygiene every three months from then on, a condition of the guarantee

Our guide to life with full-arch implants explains eating, cleaning and what to expect. Reviews are brief, and North Greenwich is five minutes from Canary Wharf on the Jubilee line.

What It Costs

Two of the four pathways include same-day teeth, each with a fixed per-arch fee:

Both include your CT scan with digital records, planning in 3D, a written plan, extractions, routine grafting when your case needs it, four to six implants, a fixed temporary bridge on the day if your bone allows,¹ the final bridge, and reviews until you're done, with a five-year guarantee for non-smokers who keep up three-monthly hygiene visits.² Monthly figures are 0% Chrysalis Finance over 12 months.⁴ IV sedation, larger bone grafts, sinus work and ongoing maintenance carry their own fees if you need them.

Same-day teeth are not the only route. If your jaw has already healed and you wear a full denture, Healed Foundation is from £9,300 per arch, and if you would rather heal before the implants go in, Staged Treatment is £11,500. Some clinics around SE London add same-day teeth on top of a quoted fee, so check what any figure includes. Our All-on-4 guide sets out all four pathways.

Questions to Ask Any Clinic

• Is the same-day bridge in the quoted fee, or an add-on?
• If the implants are not stable enough on the day, what happens next, and does the price change?
• Will you plan from a CT scan and use a surgical guide?
• Which clinician places them, and who will I see for reviews?
• What material is the permanent bridge, and when does it go in?

Nobody can guarantee same-day teeth before seeing your scan. A clinic that promises them to every patient up front is promising something it cannot yet know. Here, if the fixed teeth have to wait, the fee for your pathway does not change.

Questions

This guide explains the options in general terms. Only an examination can tell you which of them suits your own teeth.