Dentures

What Exactly Are Dentures?

Said plainly, dentures are a prostheses/ artificial body part for missing natural teeth and adjacent tissues and are a temporary or permanent tooth replacement option for people of all ages.

Losing some, or all your natural teeth, can seriously compromise your oral health related quality of life so missing teeth should not be ignored. Dentures are an extremely cost-effective replacement option for teeth lost due to tooth decay, gum disease, or trauma and dental prosthetists are the experts when it comes to design, manufacture, fitting, and rehabilitation.

Dentures have been a part of human civilisation for thousands of years (since 700 BC in fact) and are so common that we all know what they are whether we wear one ourselves or not. They are the number one false body part globally and are worn successfully by millions of people.

There are three main types:

1. Complete or full dentures

When you have no remaining natural teeth (that is you are edentulous – a fancy word for toothless) on either your top jaw or bottom jaw or both, a complete denture is a removable dental prosthesis which replaces all your lost natural teeth and surrounding tissues. They are made of an acrylic base that matches your natural gum with multi-layered composite acrylic teeth that best resemble your original smile.

For those who like technical detail here is a basic summary of the denture making process.

Full Lower Dentures – Something you should know.

It can be quite a confusing time when you first start the process of having full dentures made.

The lower full denture is particularly problematic because of the anatomy of the lower jaw and tongue. Unlike the upper full denture that achieves suction the lower full denture can often move around when eating or talking causing distress.

Whether you are an experienced denture wearer looking to have a new set or if you are new to denture wearing there is a variety of different construction techniques being marketed to solve this problem.

However, no two mouths are the same and therefore no one system works for everyone. Over the decades of running a successful denture clinic we have attempted to salvage many dentures made under a rigid construction system by other practitioners which did not work for that individual.

The only definitive way of getting the optimum outcome is to see a dental prosthetist (us of course!) who is highly skilled at assessing each patient’s distinct oral cavity and using the technique that will work for them. This involves skills, not only in the more practical laboratory elements of construction, but more importantly in having an innate ‘eye’ for individual design, appearance and eating function. Well balanced, individualised design, considering both the upper and lower jaw combined anatomy and function, is the tried-and-true way of ensuring that you can successfully wear a lower full denture.

This is should always be complemented by a comprehensive rehabilitation period. You wouldn’t expect to run straight away on a prosthetic leg so neither should you expect to be able to eat and speak without adjustments and follow up with a new denture no matter how experienced you are. That’s why we offer unlimited follow up appointments – we’re not happy till you are.

2. Partial denture

A partial denture is used when a person still has one or more natural teeth remaining. The denture will replace the missing teeth and may be held in place by clasps on what natural teeth remain. It can be made with either a hard acrylic resin, a flexible thermoplastic or a metallic cobalt-chrome base. Our Senior Dental Prosthetist will discuss the pros and cons of these 3 options with you when planning for a denture that best suits you. At your design consultation it is also a very good idea to inform us of any future dental work you are aware of needing. This information can help us properly plan the type and design to maximise the life of your new denture, for example, to allow for future tooth additions without needing to replace the denture completely.

3. A removable implant-retained denture

This is an expensive but good alternative to the standard full/complete denture, most commonly done for a full/complete lower denture. These dentures are held in place by dental implants retained within the jawbone. This denture can still be removed from the mouth by the person wearing it, but it is given more stability and security by the extra holding impact of the implants.

Your dentist will determine the suitability of this type of denture and is responsible for inserting the implants. We can make the implant retained denture for you and do all the necessary follow up over the years such as replacing implant attachments and relining the dentures to keep them fitting snugly.

4. Immediate dentures

This is another potential option when facing losing some or all of your natural teeth and replacing these lost teeth with a denture.

Usually you would have the extractions done first and then wait weeks (or months) for your gums to heal before you can safely start the process of getting a denture made. However this means that you are ‘toothless’ during this period which may not suit your lifestyle.

The solution to this dilemma is to have a denture made before the extractions which is then fitted immediately (hence ‘immediate’ denture) over the extraction sites.

Voila! You have no missing teeth. The denture can also act as a ‘bandaid’ over the extraction sites and help keep swelling down thereby speeding up healing.

However nothing is perfect. Sometimes the unexpected can happen.

How extractions, especially multiple extractions, will go can never really be fully determined beforehand. Perhaps more bone came out than usual or a particular root required more incision to come away. Maybe the swelling or bleeding was quite severe making your mouth extremely sore. These are rare but possible outcomes which can mean that you cannot tolerate the denture as was planned.

This is no one’s fault but it can be very disappointing if you have an immediate denture made but end up toothless for a short time anyway due to unforeseen circumstances.

Also immediate dentures require more follow up (and associated costs) than a ‘normal’ denture as the gum shrinks and the bite changes while healing occurs over the next weeks and months.

Another consideration is that, in consultation with us and your dentist, it may be advised that you have a temporary denture made first then your permanent denture made 6 to 12 months later which will also add to the initial costs.

These are all important things to be taken into account. Immediate dentures are a great option but with all things be informed.