Implant Overdenture
A removable prosthesis that is retained and/or supported by two or more dental implants, as opposed to resting solely on soft tissue.
Full Definition
An implant overdenture (also called an implant-retained overdenture or implant-supported overdenture) is a removable full or partial denture that derives its retention and, variably, its support from dental implants via attachments such as ball, bar, or locator systems. The distinction between retention and support is editorially significant: a tissue-supported/implant-retained overdenture differs meaningfully from a fully implant-supported design, and conflating the two is a common manuscript error. Minimum configuration guidelines (typically two implants for a mandibular overdenture) should be stated in clinical articles. Editors should note that 'overdenture' is one word, not two, and hyphenation is used only in the compound modifier form (e.g., 'implant-overdenture attachment system').
Usage
Usage note: 'Overdenture' is a single unhyphenated word. Clarify retention vs. support in all clinical descriptions.
In Context
- "The patient was rehabilitated with a mandibular implant overdenture retained by two implants with ball attachments." — Prosthetics case report
- "Authors must specify whether the overdenture is implant-retained, implant-supported, or tissue-supported to avoid ambiguity." — Manuscript style note