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Dentures

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What are dentures? What are they made of?

Have questions about dentures and restorative dentistry? Our dentists took some time to share information and answer common patient questions to help educate about what dentures are and the role that they play in oral health. View the table of contents below to learn more or find your question and get an answer from one of our dentists!

The following content was provided by Dr. Don Bailey, General Dentist, and has been medically reviewed for accuracy. Some relevant links have been added to audio transcripts to provide resources for additional information.

 

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Table of Contents

What are dentures? What are they made of?

Answer provided by Dr. Don Bailey. Transcript included below.

Dentures are a way of replacing missing teeth by having something that’s removable instead of fixed like a bridge or an implant. Partial dentures replace some teeth and full dentures would replace all the teeth in an arch. I think everyone’s kind of seeing like a little cartoon drawing of what they look like. For the most part, they have an acrylic base with acrylic teeth embedded in the base to look like gums and teeth. It stays in place for the most part by suctioning against the gum tissue butting against the ridge.

How are dentures made?

Answer provided by Dr. Don Bailey. Transcript included below.

For full dentures that are replacing all the missing teeth, there are two techniques that can be made to make them. The traditional method is to take the teeth out and heal anywhere from one to four weeks or longer before the denture’s made. Most people aren’t able to go for a very long time without teeth, either because of just the reality of their life, they may have a job where they don’t feel comfortable working without teeth or people worry about being able to eat certain things without teeth.

How long do you have to wait to get dentures after your teeth are pulled?

Answer provided by Dr. Don Bailey. Transcript included below.

That’s where if you want the most predictable outcome, then you want to wait about four weeks after the teeth come out. It’s hard to say the best denture because you can get a really good denture doing the immediate method where the denture is made the same day the teeth come out, but it’s a lot harder to get a good denture made that way than if you wait several weeks and then start. Because the molding is going to be made of the fully healed gumline, so the lab knows exactly what the gums are going to look like, so they know exactly how to fit the denture. And then you’re going to get a chance to do the different try-ins so that we can make sure that the denture has the right height, depth, and width, and that the teeth have the right alignment and right color and right shape. Generally speaking, four weeks is about the best … four to six weeks to start. Practically speaking, I think three to four weeks is right there.

Dentures with dental implants

Answer provided by Dr. Don Bailey. Transcript included below.

Dentures can be combined with implants, so a lot of people are thinking about implants replacing teeth. But you can do what are called overdentures, where you can have a few implants placed and then dentures will actually snap onto those implants with the same type of snaps that you would use to button up a jacket. When that’s done, the denture will stay in all day without any adhesive and will stay in without having the cover as much of the inside of the mouth.