Full Arch Blueprint: Anatomy to Final Restoration (Live Patient Course December 4th-6th 2026)

Full Arch Implant Course Outline: Day 1 (Didactic + Hands-On with Plastic Models)

I. Introduction to Full Arch Implant Rehabilitation

• Role of full arch implant therapy for the terminal and edentulous dentition

• Increasing full arch case acceptance in your office

• Fixed vs. removable options (overdentures, bar retained, fixed hybrids, etc.)

II. Surgical Anatomy for Full Arch Treatment

• Maxilla: maxillary sinus, nasal floor, incisive canal, canine pillar, pterygomaxillary region

• Mandible: inferior alveolar nerve, mental foramen and anterior loop, lingual concavities, sublingual/submental vasculature

• Resorption patterns and bone quality in the edentulous ridge

• Soft tissue considerations: keratinized tissue, muscle and frenum attachments

• Identifying critical landmarks on CBCT

III. Preoperative Evaluation and Treatment Planning

• Patient assessment (medical and dental history, systemic risk factors, antiresorptives, smoking, parafunction)

• Esthetic and functional evaluation: smile line, lip support, transition line, VDO, phonetics

• Restorative space requirements and bone reduction planning

• Diagnostic imaging and interpretation (CBCT, intraoral scans, photographs)

• Implant number, distribution, A-P spread, tilted implants, and cantilever limits

• Case work-ups

• Consents and case presentation

IV. Surgical Case Selection

• Ideal candidates vs. contraindications

• Terminal dentition conversion vs. edentulous arch

• Adequate bone vs. grafting, sinus augmentation, or tilted implant alternatives

• When to refer (zygomatic, pterygoid, or complex reconstruction cases)

• Concept of “surgically designed, prosthetically driven”

V. Guided Full Arch Surgery

• Principles of full arch guided surgery

• Bone reduction guides and stackable guide systems

• Digital workflow for guide design and fabrication

• Guided vs. freehand: indications and limitations

VI. Surgical Procedure Walk-Through on Plastic Models (Hands-On)

• Osteotomy preparation, including tilted posterior implants

• Implant placement: achieving primary stability, insertion torque, depth, and bone quality

• Multi-unit abutment selection, angle correction, and seating

VII. Immediate Loading

• Biologic principles: cross-arch splinting, and stability thresholds

• Criteria for immediate loading (insertion torque, implant number and distribution)

• Provisional options: denture conversion vs. prefabricated printed provisional

• Pick-up techniques and provisional finishing

VIII. Photogrammetry and Digital Scanning

• Achieving passive fit: limitations of conventional full arch impressions

• Intraoral scanning with scan bodies: technique and accuracy limits

• Principles of photogrammetry and system workflow

• Capturing soft tissue, bite registration, and scanning the provisional

• Merging data sets and communicating with the lab

IX. Final Restoration

• Healing timeline and transition to the definitive prosthesis

• Material options: PMMA, titanium bar with zirconia or acrylic, monolithic zirconia

• Prototype/try-in verification: esthetics, phonetics, occlusion, and passive fit

• Occlusal design and hygiene access

• Screw torque protocols and delivery

• Long-term maintenance and recall

X. Complications and Management

• Intraoperative: inadequate primary stability, sinus perforation, nerve injury, floor of mouth bleeding

• Postoperative: infection, early implant failure, provisional fracture

• Prosthetic: screw loosening, chipping, fracture, peri-implant disease

• Strategies for prevention and management

XI. Postoperative Care and Follow-Up

• Postoperative instructions, diet, and hygiene during provisional phase

• Pharmacological management

• Follow-up schedule and provisional adjustments

Full Arch Implant Course Outline: Day 2

XIII. Live Patient Surgery Demonstrations

• Instructor-guided live full arch surgeries

• Follow a complete patient workflow:

  • Consult → imaging interpretation → digital planning/guide fabrication → surgery → immediate load provisional → scanning/photogrammetry

• Opportunities for live interaction and Q&A

• Attendees begin performing live patient surgeries in the PM under oral surgeon guidance

• Participants complete surgery, digital records capture, and seating of provisional prosthesis

• Opportunities for live interaction and Q&A

Full Arch Implant Course Outline: Day 3

XIV. Live Patient Surgery by Participants

• Participants perform full arch surgeries under oral surgeon guidance

• Participants complete surgery, digital records capture, and seating of provisional prosthesis

• Opportunities for live interaction and Q&A