Titanium bar or acrylic: which permanent denture to choose for All-on-4 and All-on-5
How a permanent denture on a titanium bar differs from an acrylic one, why the price is almost double (1,500,000 versus 800,000 ₸), which lasts longer, which is easier to repair, and when acrylic is the sensible choice. Tursunov Clinic, Astana.
Key points
- Once the implants have integrated, the temporary denture is replaced with a permanent one. There are two options: a milled titanium bar (1,500,000–1,600,000 ₸) or an acrylic denture (800,000–900,000 ₸).
- A bar is a rigid frame milled from a single block of titanium: it does not flex or crack, it spreads the load evenly across all the implants, and it lasts 10–15 years or more.
- Acrylic is lighter and roughly half the price, but it wears down over time, can crack from a fall or a heavy bite, and needs replacing more often.
- Acrylic is a sensible choice on a tighter budget with a gentle bite; a bar is the choice when the denture needs to last a long time reliably, especially on the lower jaw and with heavy chewing.
What a permanent denture is and when it is fitted
With All-on-4/5, implants are placed on the day of surgery, and a temporary denture follows a few days later: light, so the implants integrate without being overloaded. After 3–6 months, once the bone has fused with the implants, the temporary is replaced with a permanent one. A permanent denture is what you will chew with for the next 10–15 years, so the choice of design matters more than it looks.
Both options at the clinic use screw retention to the multi-unit abutments: the denture is screwed in and can be removed for cleaning or repair when needed.
Titanium bar
The frame is milled from a single titanium block on a machine, from a digital model (the clinic takes the impression with a Primescan scanner). On top are teeth and gum tissue made of composite or acrylic.
What it gives you:
Rigidity. The bar does not flex under load, so all 4–5 implants work together and none is overloaded.
Precision of fit. The milled frame seats onto the multi-unit abutments without tension — that passive fit is what determines whether the screws stay tight and the bone stays stable.
Longevity. The bar itself is essentially permanent; the facing can be refreshed when it wears without replacing the frame.
Less bulk. Titanium is stronger, so the denture can be made thinner — less acrylic in the mouth and clearer speech.
Drawbacks: the price (1,500,000 ₸ for All-on-4, 1,600,000 for All-on-5) and the production time — the lab works with metal for longer.
Acrylic denture
Teeth and gum tissue in acrylic on a reinforced base — the same material as in classic removable dentures, just screwed onto implants.
What it gives you:
Price — 800,000 ₸ for All-on-4, 900,000 for All-on-5, nearly half the cost of a bar.
Speed — it is made faster.
Repairability — a chipped tooth is fixed simply and cheaply.
Drawbacks:
Flexibility. Without a rigid frame, the denture flexes slightly under load and the implants are loaded unevenly. That is a risk with a heavy bite or bruxism.
Wear. Acrylic wears down and absorbs staining; after 5–7 years the denture usually needs replacing or remaking.
Cracking. Acrylic can crack along its full length from a fall or hard food.
How the clinic chooses
The prosthodontist looks at three things:
The jaw. The lower jaw carries more load and the denture there is thinner, which favours a bar. On the upper jaw with a gentle bite, acrylic lasts longer.
Bite and habits. Strong chewing muscles, night-time grinding, a habit of biting hard things — all argue for a bar.
Budget and horizon. If staying within a sum now matters most, acrylic works, with the understanding that it will be refreshed in a few years. If you want to "fit it and forget it," choose a bar.
There is also a middle path: an acrylic permanent denture first, then a bar on the same implants a few years later. The implants and multi-unit abutments are not touched in the process.
What the cases show
The clinic has patients whose permanent denture on a titanium bar was fitted a week after the prosthetic stage began. A patient whose lower removable denture would not stay in place received four implants and a fixed, screw-retained denture on a titanium bar — precisely on the lower jaw, where a removable denture has nothing to grip, a bar solves the problem most reliably.
What the whole construction costs
Implants + surgery + temporary denture — 1,200,000 ₸ — 1,500,000 ₸
Permanent denture — acrylic — 800,000 ₸ — 900,000 ₸
Permanent denture — titanium bar — 1,500,000 ₸ — 1,600,000 ₸
Total with acrylic / with a bar — 2,000,000 / 2,700,000 ₸ — 2,400,000 / 3,100,000 ₸
Instalments with Kaspi Red 0-0-24 or Halyk 0-0-12; each stage is paid as it is completed — the permanent denture follows a few months after surgery.
Related services and guides
Frequently asked questions
Can I get acrylic first, then a bar later?
Yes, the implants and multi-unit abutments stay in place; only the denture changes.
Is a bar heavy?
No: titanium is light, and a denture on a bar is actually thinner than an acrylic one.
What if a tooth on the denture breaks?
Come in: an acrylic denture is repaired on the spot, a bar has its facing replaced.
Do I need to remove the denture to clean it?
Not at home — you clean it like natural teeth, with a water flosser. At a scheduled check-up the clinic removes and cleans it if needed.