What No One Tells You About Dentures?

Lacking teeth may affect how you speak, eat, and smile. Dentures are custom-made appliances designed to replace the missing teeth of a person and also restore the normal functioning and appearance of your teeth. Dentures fall into two categories- they can be full dentures or partial dentures.

When all your teeth are missing, your dentist in Enfield may recommend full dentures. The partial ones are for when you lose some of your teeth.

Types of Dentures

As earlier mentioned, there are two broad categories of dentures. Let us have an in-depth view of each of them.

Complete Dentures

Their base is made of plastic. It is colored for purposes of replication of the gum tissue. The plastic base supports a set of porcelain or plastic teeth. Your dentist seals the full denture with your gums so that it stays in place.

Alternatively, the denture can be attached to dental implants which are placed surgically in your jaw bone. This is a more costly treatment compared to traditional complete dentures.

Partial Dentures

Removable partial dentures can have a metal framework or plastic base to support the teeth which need replacement. Inside your mouth, the denture is held using rests and clasps, which are adapted around your natural teeth. Traditionally, partial dentures had a metal framework. Among the reasons metal was used is because of its strength and rigidity.

Dentists have been using plastic dentures during emergencies or for temporary replacement of lost teeth, allowing more time for your jawbone and gums to heal before finding a more permanent restorative solution. In the recent past, there has been a development in materials that provide flexible, durable alternatives.

The making of Dentures

After you have lost your tooth or have had it extracted, the bone will start filling up your tooth socket. As it heals, your gum tissue changes shape. The process will take some months until your bone and gums are in stable shape. After this, a specialist makes a full denture; eight to twelve weeks after tooth loss or extraction.

• The process begins with taking molds or impressions of your oral tissues, which are the denture’s support system.
• The impressions are taken to the dental lab to develop models of your mouth.
• Once the models are developed, the laboratory technician and the dentist will begin to build the dentures according to the models, transferring them to your mouth at every step to make sure they fit correctly. They will also check to see if the dentures will establish a proper bite and the denture’s appearance and aesthetics are desirable.

Immediate Dentures

On the day your teeth are extracted, your dentist can make immediate dentures for you, so you do not stay toothless. It is made before tooth extraction and fixed in position on the day of the procedure.

At times, your back teeth are removed first, and the front ones left standing till the denture arrives. Compared to conventional dentures, this one doesn’t fit the gum tissue and bone as intimately.

Because of this, more adjustments will be required in the healing stage. In simpler terms, dentists just use immediate dentures as temporary alternatives before a proper denture is made after the healing.

Denture Alternatives

If you are unwilling to have dentures, there is no problem because there are other substitutes. You can opt for implants or bridges.

Bridges

These appliances place crowns on those teeth near the gaps and attach fake teeth to the crowns. A variety of materials can be used to make bridges; gold, zirconium, and porcelain. Because of their cementation in place, they are referred to as permanent or fixed dentures.

Implants

Implants are metal posts inserted inside the upper or lower jawbone. To replace a missing tooth, a crown is attached to it. When there are several missing teeth, a bridge is attached to multiple implants.

It doesn’t have to come to this. Practicing good oral hygiene keeps your teeth in proper shape, but if you need dentures, do not hesitate to visit us. Our dentists can fix partial dentures for your front teeth. Enfield Dental offers all dental services ranging from general dentistry to cosmetic dentistry.