Dentures

Removable dentures are a familiar treatment option and may be one of the solutions you consider – or may have been suggested to you by your dentist – to help improve the problems caused by your loose or missing teeth.  These issues can include:

• on-going oral health issues such as dental pain, tooth decay and gum disease
• difficulty eating foods that others can easily eat – such as crunchy fruit and vegetables.  This can impact upon your ability to have a balanced diet, and reduce your enjoyment of food
• being limited in your social life e.g., only being able to order soft foods when you eat out, or even avoiding social situations altogether
• low self-confidence if you don’t like the way your teeth look.

Widely available, dentures can improve your ability to eat foods that you currently avoid and enhance your smile by replacing unsightly loose and missing teeth. For people happy with a removable solution, dentures can be the right choice.

Dentures are designed to fit snugly over your gums and can be removed. Full or complete dentures (where there are no natural teeth remaining) are normally held by suction to your gums. When they fit well, this can keep them firmly in your mouth. Over time, all dentures will loosen and require a new lining, additional denture adhesive or a total remake.

Denture adhesive can be used to help hold them more securely as it can give better grip. Most readily available adhesives last between eight and ten hours before needing to be reapplied. Partial dentures can be clipped onto existing teeth and released using tooth-coloured or metal clasps.

Some dentures, called implant retained dentures, can be attached to dental implants with magnets but unlike implant retained bridges which remain permanently fixed in your mouth, they need to be removed at night and maintained like other removable dentures.

Well, looked after dentures can last for five to ten years before needing to be relined with acrylic resin to help them fit better, or replaced.

The most important thing is how well they fit. Gums naturally recede as you age and, while dentures are moulded to fit your gums exactly, your jawbone will gradually shrink and deteriorate (a natural process known as resorption). This can be made worse by wearing dentures, especially when they don’t fit well or grind against remaining teeth.

This means your dentures may no longer fit properly and may start to become progressively looser, leading to slipping, discomfort or lisping. The dentures may need to be replaced to address these problems. See your dentist as soon as possible for advice.