About Dentures

Dr. Tanvee Singh, Smile Care, Bandra 2

Dentures are replacement teeth for teeth that are missing, as a result of falling out or having to be pulled. Dentures are commonly worn mostly by older individuals. They are usually constructed out of metal and acrylic resin, a material very similar to plastic. Dentures are not permanent inside of the mouth, and therefore are removable.

Types :

There are two different types of dentures: partial dentures and complete (also referred to as "immediate") dentures. Partial dentures take the place of a few missing teeth, whereas complete dentures, unsurprisingly, replace every tooth in the mouth. They are both removable and made out of acrylic resin and metal.

Significance :

Dentures are worn by individuals who have lost some or all of their teeth, usually from tooth decay periodontal disease or injury. The reason for dentures is to benefit a person's appearance, because teeth help support facial muscles. Without the help of dentures supporting these muscles, the face would sag and make a person appear older than their years. Dentures also make eating (especially chewing) and speaking much easier.

Caring for dentures :

  1. Dentures need to be taken care of just like natural teeth do. They should be brushed with your denture toothpaste twice daily to remove lingering food particles, as well as plaque build up.
  2. Remove the denture and rinse your mouth with a mouth wash once daily to keep infections at bay.
  3. Visit your dentist when you develop sores or experience sudden difficulty in speaking or eating.
  4. Make sure you get your denture reevaluated at every 6 months interval by your dentist.

Prevention/Solution :

There are several ways to avoid getting periodontal disease or tooth decay, which are both things that lead to having to get dentures, whether they are complete or partial. Floss your teeth daily, limit your intake of sugary soft drinks, brush your teeth at least twice a day with a toothpaste containing fluoride, and visit the dentist every 6 months for a routine cleaning and checkup appointment.

Considerations :

There are some disadvantages to having dentures. They definitely take a while to get used to, which is not surprising as you would have a whole new set of teeth in your mouth. People with dentures often have speech issues when they are getting used to them. Sores and other mouth irritations also can occur with dentures (these are usually caused by not removing your dentures enough or not cleaning them properly).

Facts :

A new denture will not last forever, and if old dentures are much over 7 years, the mouth and face will have changed in ways which will make it more difficult to build satisfactory new ones. What happens over the course of a number of years, is that the dentures slowly disappear under the lip, and upper and lower dentures began to fit together differently bringing lower jaw forward, and in some cases making it possible to bite only on the front denture teeth. If lose dentures are worn long enough, body will tend slowly to build more and more soft flabby gum tissue to fill the spaces between the denture base and the underlying bone.

  1. Lower dentures can be very hard to wear. Many people with upper and lower dentures often wear only the upper on a routine basis, since uppers are retained with at least degree of suction. Fortunately, now there is a way to stabilize the lower denture by fabricating Implant supported or Implant retained dentures.
  2. 2.Many people stop going to their dentist after dentures are fitted. Some people believe that complete dentures mean the end to oral problems and those original dentures should last forever. Regular check-ups are still the best insurance that your mouth is healthy.