One Design, Not Patches
The whole mouth is planned as one design instead of one tooth at a time, so each repair is chosen to fit the rest.
Full-Mouth Reconstruction in McLean, VA
The whole mouth, rebuilt as one plan.
When teeth are worn, broken, failing or missing across the mouth, a prosthodontist rebuilds them together, with implants, crowns, bridges and veneers chosen to fit one design and one bite. Board-certified prosthodontist Dr. Esam Abou Nahlah plans it and restores it.
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The Benefits
What a Full-Mouth Reconstruction Gives You
When worn, broken and missing teeth arrive together, a reconstruction plans the finished mouth first, so every crown, bridge, veneer and implant works toward one result.
See the Result First
A free digital preview, built from photos and scans of your mouth, shows the finished smile. You approve it before any tooth is prepared.
Upper and Lower That Meet
Both jaws are designed to meet as one bite, and the final teeth are balanced to it.
Natural Teeth Kept Where Possible
Teeth that can stay are crowned, bridged or veneered, and implants replace only the ones that are missing.
Foundations Treated First
Gum disease, failing teeth and thin bone are dealt with before the new teeth go in, in the order the plan sets.
A Plan Sized to You
If the examination shows only part of the mouth needs work, the plan stays that size.
Compare
Full-Mouth Reconstruction, Smile Makeover or All-on-4?
Three ways to change a lot of teeth at once. The examination and scan decide which one your mouth needs.
CompareFull-Mouth ReconstructionSmile MakeoverAll-on-4
What it rebuildsMost or all of the teeth in both jaws, back teeth and bite includedMostly the teeth that showA whole upper or lower arch
Your natural teethKept where possible, and crowned, bridged or veneeredKept, with veneers, crowns or whiteningReplaced by a fixed arch on four titanium posts
Missing teethImplants replace only the teeth that are missingBridges or implants, where the design needs themThe whole arch is carried on four implants
Seeing it firstA free digital preview, approved before any tooth is preparedA free Digital Smile Design, approved before preparation startsThe final teeth designed before a single implant is placed
How longIn stages; a few months to over a year where implants are involvedIn the order the design requiresFixed provisional teeth the same day in most cases, the zirconia final three to four months later
What It Is
What Is Full-Mouth Reconstruction?
Full-mouth reconstruction, which prosthodontists also call full-mouth rehabilitation, restores most or all of the teeth in both jaws. Rather than fixing one tooth at a time, the specialist plans the finished mouth first: how the teeth look, how the upper and lower meet, and what each tooth needs to get there.
Signs
When Do You Need Full-Mouth Reconstruction?
Worn and broken teeth, several missing teeth, gum disease and a bite that no longer meets evenly tend to arrive together, and they are often one problem: once a tooth is lost, the bone under it deteriorates and the damage spreads to its neighbors.
Because a prosthodontist reads the whole mouth as one system, the question at your first visit is not which tooth do I fix first but what does the finished mouth need. A second opinion on a plan you already have costs nothing.
The Parts
What Treatments Are Part of a Reconstruction?
Most plans combine several of these; the design decides which tooth gets which.
01Crowns
Custom caps over natural teeth that are too worn, cracked or stained for anything thinner.
02Bridges
Linked crowns that fill a gap. Carried on implants, a zirconia bridge leaves the healthy teeth beside it untouched.
03Porcelain Veneers
Hand-designed porcelain over less than a millimeter of enamel, for front teeth that are chipped, spaced or stained.
Veneers in detail
04Implants and Full Arches
Where teeth are missing or beyond saving, implants carry the new teeth, from a single crown to a fixed zirconia arch.
Full-mouth implantsWhy Choose Us
Why Choose Dr. Nahlah for a Full-Mouth Reconstruction
Full-mouth rehabilitation is the core of prosthodontics. Dr. Nahlah plans the finished mouth, places the implants and fits the final teeth himself, with a lab in our McLean office.
What to askOur practiceOther offices
Who plans itA board-certified prosthodontist; full-mouth rehabilitation is the core of the specialtySome rely on a weekend implant course
Hands on your caseDr. Nahlah plans the surgery and the final teeth himselfA surgeon, a dentist and an outside lab each handle a part
PlanningThe finished mouth comes first, and each tooth’s treatment is chosen to serve itSome fix one tooth at a time as problems appear
Seeing it firstA free digital preview, approved before any tooth is preparedAsk whether you will see the result before work begins
SurgeryImplants placed through guides printed from the scan of both jawsSome place implants freehand and judge by eye
LabA lab in our McLean office, so shade and fit are settled with you in personSome send the work out and wait weeks for it
ComfortNitrous oxide or oral sedation from the practice’s own team for the longer visitsAsk what sedation is offered, and who gives it
ScopeThe plan kept to the size your mouth needs, and you hear that at the first visitAsk whether the whole mouth truly needs treating
Dr. Esam Abou NahlahD.D.S., M.S.
Meet the Doctor
Meet Dr. Esam Abou Nahlah
As an award-winning board-certified specialist in prosthodontic dentistry, Dr. Nahlah provides patients with a premier level of dental care using the industry’s most advanced technology. He has been practicing since 2003, in Northern Virginia since 2013, entirely on prosthodontics. Diplomate of the American Board of Prosthodontics and Fellow of the American College of Prosthodontists. In 2013, the American Board of Prosthodontics awarded Dr. Nahlah the most prestigious award in prosthodontics: “Diplomate of American Board of Prosthodontics.”
Adjunct faculty at Virginia Commonwealth University, teaching the residents in its Prosthodontics Postgraduate Program, and lecturing on smile design and implants.
Across that career, over 18,000 implants placed and over 15,000 arches restored.
Credentials & Certifications
- Diplomate, American Board of Prosthodontics
- Fellow, American College of Prosthodontists
- Adjunct Faculty, VCU Prosthodontics Postgraduate Program
- Certificate in Prosthodontics
- M.S., Master of Science in Oral Biology
- Fellow, International Congress of Oral Implantologists
- Associate Fellow, American Academy of Implant Dentistry
The Process
How Does Full-Mouth Reconstruction Work?
01Evaluation
Time with Dr. Nahlah, your goals, a free digital preview of how the result will look, and the options with their prices.
02Scan and examination
A complete examination and a cone-beam scan of both jaws, to find what needs treating before anything else: gum disease, failing teeth, missing bone.
03One Complete Plan
Shape, shade, proportion and bite settled for the whole mouth, and approved by you before any tooth is prepared.
04Treatment in Stages
Treatment in the sequence the plan sets, which can mean extractions and grafting before implants and crowns, with the lab in the building adjusting shade and fit.
Before & After
Smiles I Have Rebuilt
BeforeAfter
BeforeAfterWhat My McLean Patients Say
My Office
Why Everything Is Done in One Building
My Tysons Corner office has six surgical suites, with its dental laboratory down the hall. In a full-mouth case that means I place the implants, and the teeth that go on them are designed, milled and fired, without the work leaving the building.
When a provisional needs reshaping or a shade is not quite right, the lab is down the hall to correct it.
- Both jaws scanned in 3D before anything is planned
- Implants placed through guides printed from the scan
- Crowns, bridges and arches milled and fired on site
Other Options
If a Full Reconstruction Is Not the Right Fit
01
Smile Makeover
When the work is mostly in the teeth that show.
Explore02
Full-Mouth Dental Implants
When most teeth are missing and both arches go on implants.
Explore03
Crowns & Bridges
For a few worn, cracked or missing teeth rather than the whole mouth.
Explore04
Porcelain Veneers
Thin porcelain for front teeth that are chipped, spaced or stained.
ExploreQuestions
Full-Mouth Reconstruction Questions
Where do you do full-mouth reconstruction?
At my office, Suite 220, 7901 Jones Branch Drive, near Tysons Corner: the second floor, with parking under the building. Your scan, your implant surgery and the lab work all happen there.The Tysons Corner office →
How long does a full-mouth reconstruction take?
It depends on what the plan holds. Crowns and veneers on sound teeth take a few appointments; an implant needs about four months to fuse with the bone, and grafting adds several months before it. I write down your timeline at the first consultation.
Is a full-mouth reconstruction the same as All-on-4?
Not necessarily. All-on-4 rebuilds a whole arch on four implants and is one way to do it. Where I can keep your natural teeth, a reconstruction crowns, bridges or veneers them instead, and implants replace only the teeth that are missing.All-on-4 in McLean →
Does insurance cover full-mouth reconstruction?
Most PPO dental plans are accepted, and my office files the claims for you. I set out what insurance and financing leave for you to pay with your plan at the consultation, before anything starts.Insurance and financing →
Can I be sedated for the surgery?
Yes: nitrous oxide, or oral sedation for longer visits, given at my office by my own team. Those are the only two options I offer, and after oral sedation someone needs to drive you home.Sedation options →
How long does the work last?
Looked after, a long time: a crown lasts fifteen years or more, and implants are designed to last decades. I give you a five-year warranty on implant work, kept by a cleaning every six months.The five-year warranty →
Book a Full-Mouth Evaluation With Me
A full examination, a scan of both jaws and a free preview of the result. New patients call (703) 448-3312, or book online with my Tysons Corner office.
Tysons Corner · McLean
Dr. Nahlah Implants and Prosthodontics Specialists7901 Jones Branch Drive, Suite 220
McLean, VA 22102
New patients(703) 448-3312
Current patients(571) 702-9832
DirectionsBook Online