Dental Dentures

Dental dentures are artificial replacements used for your natural teeth and gums. If an accident, poor dental health, or disease has caused you to have only a few healthy natural teeth or none at all, a dentist or prothodontist will recommend dentures to replace the missing teeth.

Dentures are most ideal if you have significant erosion of the gum and jaw line which makes other dental procedures such as crowns and implants less desirable. They also may be used to replace an entire row of teeth rather than a single tooth.

The ideal candidate for dentures

Because dentures are relatively non-invasive, they are well suited to people who are unwilling to go through a more extensive dental procedure such as that used for dental implants.

Elderly

1. Complete Dentures

These dentures replace all of the teeth and are what we often refer to as "false teeth". They are made of colored plastic base to duplicate the gum tissue and the artificial teeth are made either of porcelain or plastic. Complete dentures are held in place in the mouth by suction, thus forming a seal to the gums, or they can also be attached to dental implants which are placed into the jaw bone through surgical procedure. However, the use of dental implants cost more than the traditional way of attaching complete dentures.

Most people might experience soreness at first during the initial placement of complete dentures and it might take them some time to get used to it. Immediate dentures and conventional dentures are the two types of complete dentures.

Immediate dentures are made in advance and are placed right after your teeth are extracted. Your dentist will first take measurements and models of your jaw and teeth during the first visit to make the immediate dentures. One advantage of immediate dentures is that you don't have to go without teeth during the healing period (which can usually take up to six months). This type of complete dentures also act as a protection for the tissues and can reduce bleeding after the extraction of the teeth. However, one drawback is that immediate dentures require frequent adjustments during the healing period when the bones and gums shrink over time from reduced

2. Partial Dentures

Also called "partials" or "removable partial denture prostheses", this type of dentures are for individuals who still have some natural teeth remaining or when the remaining natural teeth are not strong enough to support a bridge. Partial dentures fill the gap caused by missing teeth and prevent the other natural teeth from shifting position. They are held in place by clasps and rests that are carefully fitted around the natural teeth, and can be taken out for cleaning or at night.

These dentures are made either of metal framework or plastic base to support the artificial teeth needed to replace the lost ones. There are more advanced materials used lately for partial dentures such as Valplast which offers a flexible and durable option and uses internal attachments instead of clasps for a more natural-looking appearance.

Denture