Dentures, aka Plates, aka false teeth, are different names given to one of the oldest clinical methods for replacing missing teeth. They are considered removable prosthesis because patients can remove them form the mouth to be cleaned, adjusted etc. Although they are still being used in clinical dentistry, they have lost their status position due to advent of alternative treatment options such as dental implants and dental bridges.
Types of dentures
Dentures are classified into partial and complete dentures. Partial dentures are defined for patients who are missing some teeth built not all of them. Remaining teeth must be in a healthy state to support a partial denture. Therefore, dental cleaning, restoration such as fillings and crowns, and extraction of any broken tooth or root tips must be completed prior to making the partial dentures. There are many different forms of partial dentures. Factors such as esthetics, number of remaining teeth and the expected time where dentures are supposed to be used are taken into consideration. In general, longer lasting partial dentures are also the least esthetically pleasing and the most challenging to get used to.
Complete dentures
Complete or full dentures are made when patient has absolutely no teeth, or none of the remaining teeth can be saved to support a partial denture. Complete dentures are primarily made of acrylic. They are viable, cost-effective treatment option to restore missing teeth and some esthetics, however, they require a long adjustment period for a patient receiving them. Often, they also require multiple in office adjustments. Unfortunately, they do not feel like teeth and are notorious in causing sore spots in the mouth. Reduction is sensation of food flavor is also another negative side effect for complete dentures.
Drawbacks of dentures
Patients with long term use of dentures are prone to significant bone loss. Over the course of few decades boneless can lead to changes in facial symmetry and dynamics. One way to avoid this problem and eliminate and other mentioned drawbacks of dentures is to consider dental implants in conjunction with dentures. Implant supported dentures do not require support from teeth or gums to gain stability. Therefore, making them more comfortable as they rest on the implants. Also, they can be made smaller with less coverage of the roof of the mouth making them more comfortable to use.
What we can promise
At Dental Atelier we take our responsibility of making dentures very serious by paying a lot of attention to comfort, and esthetics of the results. By using high quality denture material, and attention to anatomical details of every patient, we provide comfortable natural appearing dentures. In most cases we do recommend implants to support the dentures, improve stability and longevity of the treatment. However, we also do understand that in some cases dentures maybe the only option and we make every effort to create beautiful looking dentures for our patients.