Providing an affordable alternative to dentures with same-day full mouth implants
Rudi Mukherjee, Clinical Director of EvoDental
At EvoDental, my role is to oversee the running our clinics based in Liverpool, Solihull and in two locations in London. As well as performing surgery, I’m in charge of the training and recruitment of our clinicians, developing clinical processes and importantly, overseeing the treatment and care of our patients looking for a long-lasting, affordable solution for replacing dentures and missing or failing teeth.
The implant surgery we perform daily is complex full jaw rehabilitation for patients who are close to, or are already totally edentulous. After a detailed assessment we use CT scans and photogrammetry technology to calculate the position of the implants which then allows us manufacture a custom-made set of teeth in our own on-site labs so patients can have fixed teeth in just one day.
Providing teeth in a day is not unique to EvoDental. What is unique is that we only provide full mouth immediate load solutions and nothing else, and only for patients that are suitable for this very particular treatment. By implementing a digital workflow we can eliminate a lot of the traditional steps involved in implant work, creating greater efficiency in the process which makes the treatment much more cost-effective for our patients. We are very much geared towards functional dentistry that lasts a long time, making it as affordable as possible to greatly improve patients’ quality of life.
Our implant treatment packages are designed for those facing a lifetime of dentures who want to upgrade from upper and lower dentures to something permanent but have limited funds plus a very poor clinical situation. The majority of our patients have some teeth, but almost all have severe gum disease for a variety of reasons and may have been told that they’re not suitable for implants and that little more can be done. Most patients come to us directly by finding us through consumer marketing, with around 15% of our patients being referred from their own dentist.
Getting the right equipment
EvoDental has worked with NSK for a long time. We need equipment we can rely on and that’s why we use a range of NSK handpieces, surgical and decontamination equipment across our clinics, all backed up by NSK’s excellent customer support.
I do a lot of zygomatic and pterygoid implant placement and for those cases I use the specialised NSK SGX-E20R handpiece. It has a unique angulated shape designed specifically for these implants and it gives me really good access to hard-to-reach areas of the mouth.
We use the large capacity NSK iClave plus vacuum autoclave to reprocess handpieces and implant equipment, which is particularly important in the current climate, as well as using the NSK iCare+ to automatically clean, disinfect and lubricate handpieces prior to autoclave sterilisation.
I routinely use the NSK Surgic Pro surgical implant unit which I describe as ‘bomb-proof’ because it’s so reliable. I still have its predecessor, the Surgic XT, which is still going strong should I ever need to use it. As part of our in-house clinician training we’ve also been trialling the new Surgic Pro2 surgical micromotor for NSK with a new wireless foot pedal which is already making a big difference to surgical procedures.
Oral health care
At EvoDental we don’t just place implants and send patients away. Every patient is routinely called back for implant maintenance where they’re treated by our dentists as a key part of their training pathway. Dentists need to understand how to maintain implants, deal with any complications and look at the long term future of patients rather than simply concentrate only on placement.
Our dentists use the NSK Perio-Mate oral health care system to thoroughly clean around the gum line, implants and fixed prosthetics. This is particularly important for older patients who often find cleaning their prosthetics and maintaining their oral health more difficult.
Making the connection
We actively encourage referring dentists to come in and spend a day with us to observe the life-changing work that we do in our surgeries. This is also an opportunity to take part in one of our multi-disciplinary meetings where our clinicians and technicians meet to discuss each individual case and where we allocate a clinician based on the case complexity. Dentists are always welcome to talk to our patients to discuss their treatment experience and see the final outcome for themselves.
We want to connect with dentists and help them understand that patients with limited resources can have full jaw implant treatment that is normally reserved for high-end private patients. If a patient’s quality of life can be improved in this way then it should be offered to them – it can be life-changing. We aim to make treatment as affordable as possible and my personal measure of success is whether I’ve made a perceptible difference to my patients’ daily life.
Service matters
NSK’s products are not just fantastic quality, for me it’s all about the people who work there. Ralf Wendel is my local NSK product specialist and he really understands all our requirements. The NSK team go above and beyond if there’s ever any problem to ensure we can carry on working, they really look after us well. You can’t replace that type of service and you’re not paying a fortune for it either! NSK products are always great value so it’s a win/win situation all round – I wouldn’t look anywhere else.
Dr Rudi Mukherjee
I joined EvoDental in 2016 and have been Clinical Lead of the London Supercentre since 2017. I oversee the care of all the patients that join the Evo family when they put their trust in our team to change their lives.
Since becoming a dentist, I have always been involved in dental implantology and my interest in this subject has led me around the world, learning from some of the most forward-thinking clinicians in the field. I began to focus on full jaw rehabilitation as it became increasingly apparent that the patients in the most need had the fewest feasible treatment solutions and inevitably ended up wearing dentures.
EvoDental is a fascinating company to be a part of, because nothing stands still. Continuous improvement in our work processes and the latest technology has allowed us to make simple work of very complex dental problems. It is amazing to be able to tell a patient that we can fix their problem in a single procedure. It’s also great to be involved with teaching and mentoring other dentists.
