What Are Dentures?
Dentures are artificial teeth that replace your natural teeth that can’t be saved. Dentures can be partial to replace some of your teeth or full to replace all of the teeth in either the upper or lower arch. Some full dentures are secured with suction and adhesives and some are supported by dental implants. Partial dentures attach to the existing healthy teeth with metal clasps. They are made from a variety of materials such as porcelain and acrylic and they vary in quality.
Benefits of Dentures
Dentures provide many benefits for patients, including:
- Replace all of your teeth at once. When you don’t have any teeth that are healthy enough to remain in your mouth, dentures provide a single replacement option for an entire arch of teeth in one prosthetic.
- Regain chewing ability. Dentures give you the ability to eat a variety of foods that you may not have been able to chew when your teeth were in place but damaged.
- Improve your speech. Missing teeth can cause speech problems that dentures can correct.
- More affordable than dental implants. To replace every tooth with a single dental implant is a costly process. Dentures can replace your teeth without the need for any dental implants, or with the use of just a few dental implants, which reduces the cost.
- Quality dentures provide a natural appearance. Dentures that are made with quality materials and processes will look very natural. Be wary of inexpensive dentures that may appear fake and won’t last as long.
Types of Dentures We Offer
We provide a variety of denture types for patients who have lost all or the majority of their teeth, including:
- Traditional dentures. Traditional dentures are secured to the gums by way of suction and/or denture adhesives. They replace an entire arch of teeth on either the upper or lower jaw, or both in many cases.
- Ball attachment dentures. Ball attachment dentures are a type of implant supported dentures that are attached to two dental implants. The implants are surgically placed in the jaw and the dentures snap onto the ball attachments on the implants. This type is removable.
- Bar attachment dentures. Bar attachment dentures use 4-6 dental implants and a bar connecting them. The dentures snap onto the bar with clips. This type is more secure than ball attachment dentures because there are more implants to support them. They are also removable.
- Screw retained dentures. Screw retained dentures attach to 5 or more dental implants with either ball or bar attachments. However, these are permanently attached and can only be removed by your dentist. They tend to be more comfortable but do require regular cleaning underneath.
- Partial dentures. Partial dentures replace a few teeth and attach to the existing healthy teeth with metal clasps.
Are You a Good Candidate for Dentures?
If a significant number or all of your teeth are lost or unable to be saved, you may be a good candidate for dentures. To be eligible for implant supported dentures you must have sufficient bone structure in your jaw to support the implants. If not, you could consider traditional dentures or a bone graft procedure could be done to prepare your jaw for implants. In cases where some of the teeth can be saved, you may be a good candidate for partial dentures so that they can be attached to the remaining teeth.
Why Choose Leading Edge Specialized Dentistry?
Implant supported dentures are only as secure as the implants that support them. An experienced periodontist can place your implants accurately so that they can form a solid bond with the jaw bone. Leading Edge Specialized Dentistry specializes in dental implant placement and other procedures to prepare your jaw for dentures. We offer a variety of denture options to meet the different needs of our patients.