Treatments - Dentures

Dentures are false teeth made to replace teeth you have lost. They help in restoring normal speech, eating capacity and looks of the person.

Dentures can be complete or partial. Complete or full dentures are given when you have lost all your original teeth while Partial dentures are indicated when you still have some original teeth left. Complete dentures cover your entire upper or lower jaw while partials replace one or a few teeth. Full dentures are made from acrylic materials for the gums, while partial dentures may have a framework of metal or acrylic. The denture teeth are generally acrylic although porcelain is also sometimes used.

Full dentures

Full dentures are placed on the gums and are held in place by suction when well made. The saliva also helps in adhesion of the dentures to the gums. Partial dentures are retained using clasps that hook around your remaining teeth or precision attachments.

Various materials for dentures are available, such as the acrylic, metal or flexible dentures. Today, the patient also has a choice of flexible dentures which are much more comfortable and conform better to the soft gums.

Flexible partial denture

They are light in weight, strong and much more natural looking than conventional acrylic dentures and do not require any alterations in the existing teeth and tissues. Flexible Partial allows the restoration to adapt to the constant movement and flexibility in your mouth.

Two other categories of dentures are Immediate and Overdentures. Immediate dentures (sometimes called temporary dentures) are actually made before the natural teeth are extracted. After the teeth are extracted, a prefabricated denture is inserted directly over the sockets. The patient is thus at no time without teeth and can usually go on with his routine chores. However, more permanent dentures need to be made once the tissues have healed. This is because the tissues shrink upon healing and the fit of the immediate dentures is lost.

Overdentures are made over the few remaining teeth or dental implants. The remaining good teeth or implants provide good stability and retention to the dentures. To fit an overdenture, the natural teeth usually need to be reshaped to fit in the denture.

Newer advances in dentistry have resulted in other superior alternatives to complete & removable dentures which are dental implants.