Dentures

Find out more information about dentures and the different types of services we can offer you according to your individual circumstances. We can provide complete denture services as well as partial denture service and immediate denture services.Read more below to find out which service may suit you best.

Complete Dentures

We provide complete denture services in Dandenong. Learn more about complete dentures below.

THINGS THAT CAUSES LOST TEETH?

When a tooth is lost, in general it is probably due to one of these reasons:

  • caries
  • gum problems(periodontal diseases)
  • trauma or accident
  • congenital (e.g:anadontia,hypodontia)
  • supernumerary (extra teeth)
  • impacted tooth

There are several aspects that are affected once we loose our teeth: psychologically and oral health in general.

A denture is constructed to improve social life, overall well-being, to avoid depression and most importantly to improve appearance as well as to restore self-esteem. These are all essential to increase quality of life.

Though psychological aspect is important, what most people neglect to see is the importance of maintaining oral health in general. Wearing a denture can minimises bone resorption and trauma to the remaining oral structures while performing function such as eating and talking. Replacement of the missing teeth is crucial to avoid the remaining teeth present from rotating, over eruption and moving towards the space of the missing teeth (may cause misalignment and occlusion instability).

PERMANENT DENTURES ARE NOT ONLY FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE

Permanent dentures replace natural teeth lost due to injury or poor oral conditions. It restores a person’s aesthetics, chewing and speaking functions. It also maintains the health of oral tissues and other remaining teeth. Therefore, permanent dentures are not restricted for elderly people only. However, younger patients prefer dental implants because it can stop the continual bone loss and shrinkage of jawbone. Also, dental implants are very much like natural teeth and one can be sure that your dental implants would not move or loosen.

Subject to the condition of the mouth, patients may be referred to a dentist during the first visit to a Denture Clinic

Clearly, patients have a right to choose care and services from among a range of qualified dental health care professionals. With the evolution of international base-line competencies, and the development of first-rate retraining and upgrading opportunities, Dental prosthetist as a profession has come of age. Patients must be free to select the type of service that best meet their needs in terms of personal care, well being and affordability.

GETTING PERMANENT DENTURES IS AFFORDABLE AND EASY

Permanent dentures cost much cheaper than dental implants and may only take a few dental visits. On your first dental visit, your dental prosthetist would assess the health of your oral tissues. If it is satisfactory, the dental prosthetist will provide you with a treatment plan and the cost involved.

After your acceptance of the treatment plan, the dental prosthetist would continue by taking impressions of your mouth with a dough-like material which would set over time to a rubbery consistency. Your dental prosthetist will register your jaw positions by asking you to bite on a wax mould on your next visit. Also, tooth colour and size will be selected during your second dental visit.

The next dental visit is important and it is recommended to bring along a relative or a friend as the “try-in” stage is a stage where you are asked to try a waxed model of your dentures and major adjustments can only be made at this stage like positioning of teeth. The fourth dental visit is to fit your new dentures in your mouth.  A dental visit after a few days of wearing your dentures may be needed to relieve pressure points that may cause sore spots.

YOU NEED TO GET USED TO YOUR PERMANENT DENTURES

Though dentures are replacements for missing teeth and may look so natural that others cannot differentiate the difference, you can. This is because they do not exactly feel the same like your natural teeth and thus, you may need time to get used to it (about 2-6 weeks). Even if you have been wearing dentures for some time, you would still need to get used to the feeling of new dentures alike getting a new pair of shoes. You may experience a bulky or loose feeling, excessive saliva flow, lost of eating sensations, difficulty pronouncing some words and soreness but with practice and time, you will get accustomed to your dentures.

These are several criteria’s that can be taken into account during evaluation of a good denture:

Stability

The denture must be able to sit properly in the mouth without moving sideways during function. The more denture base covering the edentulous area, better stability will be achieved. This is subjected to the patients’ oral anatomy.

Retention

Is described as how well the denture will be able to resist vertical forces (opposite the direction of insertion). In complete denture, note that a critical element for a good retention is by achieving suction i.e. shares the same principle as a suction cup. Though sometimes trying to get ‘suction’ can be quite difficult, another option is by inserting retentive components in the denture design.

Physical anatomy

Anatomical structures may also contribute in stability and retention of a denture such as undercuts and retromolar pads. Other contributing structures are our masticatory and facial muscles. Muscles help to exert external force on the denture to keep it in place.

Partial Dentures

Generally required by people who still have some of their natural teeth and only need to replace a few that are missing.

These can be made from  Acrylic, Metal, or Flexible material. They can also be combined together for a strong invisible denture.

We can also add additional teeth over time if required.

The main benefits to a partial denture are:

  • Improved appearance and self- confidence. Having your smile back will of course do wonders for you confidence and ability to socialise.
  • Better chewing. It will restore your bite and ability to chew.
  • Improved speech. Your front top teeth are very important in making certain sounds- V and F are made when the bottom lip contacts the edges of the central upper incisors.
  • Prevent teeth moving and the consequences of missing teeth. If spaces are left long term, we commonly see the teeth opposite over-erupt. Over many years, they can grow to almost touch the other gum. If at this point, you decide you want something done, the treatment isn’t going to be so simple. Neighbouring teeth to the space can also shift and tilt creating areas that lead to food packing, plaque accumulation, gum disease and tooth decay. The longer spaces are left the more chance of movement and problems. However not all teeth
    • will move and if they haven’t for a number of years, it is unlikely they will start.
    • Reduce the risk of TMJD
    • Prevent facial changes- by helping support your muscles, cheeks and lips
    • Protect other teeth. Reduce the likelihood of problems with other teeth by taking pressure off them. The fewer teeth you have, the increased stress they receive and the greater the risk of tooth wear, periodontal disease and the more likely fillings and restorations are to fail.
    • Preparing for further tooth loss- by allowing you to develop the necessary muscle control for wearing complete dentures successfully in the future.

WHAT ARE COBALT CHROME DENTURES?

Cobalt Chrome dentures have a metal base plate or framework that sits on and around the natural teeth onto which denture teeth are attached by acrylic.

How they Work?

Stability (not rocking) and retention (grip) come from the metal framework gripping the natural teeth so will be affected by both the number and position of your remaining teeth.

The denture design is also critical. Time must be spent on the planning and preparing the teeth to make sure the denture has the best possible grip and resistance to your chewing forces.

They can be ‘tooth borne’, (supported just by your teeth) which is always preferred where possible or ‘tooth and mucosal borne’ denture, (supported by both teeth and mucosa).

What are their Advantages?

  • Most comfortable to wear
  • Easiest to adapt to
  • Smaller, thinner and more streamlined
  • The best grip (retention)
  • Best chewing experience
  • The most hygienic
  • Very close fitting and precise
  • Are designed specific to each mouth- numerous features can be incorporated to improve the denture.
  • Very strong
  • Patients have good confidence in wearing them.
  • Clasps can easily be tightened to increase the grip.

What are their Disadvantages?

  • More expensive initially and when any changes need to be done
  • Some changes are difficult to do, (such as adding teeth)- this depends on the design and a remake is occasionally needed
  • Problems with natural teeth such as fractured fillings will affect the fit of the framework
  • Can be bent if sat on and will need to be remade
  • Are made of metal which may be visible
  • More tricky to make and get right.

THE ULTIMATE THERMOPLASTIC UNDETECTABLE PARTIAL DENTURES

What if there were a way to replace missing teeth that didn’t involve any expensive surgical procedures?

What if there were an affordable method of tooth replacement that didn’t sacrifice aesthetics?

What if there existed a partial denture that could actually blend in with your natural dentition so that it appeared invisible in your mouth?

With the introduction of Flexible Dentures, nobody has to know that you have missing teeth.

What are the Advantages?

  • Easy to adapt to
  • Comfortable to wear
  • Smaller and thinner than acrylic dentures
  • Great grip (retention) much better than acrylic dentures
  • Look great- blend very naturally with your gums
  • Contain no metal
  • Good chewing experience
  • Slightly flexible
  • Don’t require as much muscle control as acrylic
  • Very close fitting and precise
  • Almost unbreakable
  • Provide good confidence in wearing

What are their Disadvantages?

  • More expensive
  • Less hygienic than a Cobalt chrome denture
  • Changes cannot be made- no relines, tooth additions etc. so will need to be remade if problems occur and when they lose their fit over time.
  • Sometimes difficult to take in and out (this obviously has its advantages)
  • Require special cleaning
  • May need to cover the palate if teeth are missing on both sides – this affects telling temperature and the chewing experience. An alternative is two small dentures one for either side
  • If replacing a single tooth are small and easily misplaced.

Best Situations?

  • Where the mouth is unlikely to change
  • Great for a single missing tooth at the side or back (premolars/molars)
  • In patients where muscle control is compromised but not dexterity- for putting them in and taking them out
  • Where allergy to metal or metal free denture desired
  • As a thinner more grippy alternative to acrylic dentures when many teeth have been lost.
 
 

 

WHAT ARE ACRYLIC DENTURES?

Acrylic dentures consist of the denture teeth attached to an acrylic base plate.

How they Work?

Stability (not rocking) and retention (grip) come from 3 aspects of the acrylic denture:

  1. The denture fitting closely and tightly against the gums and natural teeth
  2. The use of wrought metal clasps (retainers) to grip the teeth
  3. In cases where only a few teeth remain; a well fitting base plate, covering as much of the hard tissue, (that’s the jawbone, palate and ridges) in your mouth as possible.

They are ‘mucosal borne dentures’- meaning they get support (resist chewing forces) by sitting on your ridges.

What are their Advantages?

  • Cheapest
  • Quick and easy to make (though not necessarily to get right)
  • Easy to change- add teeth, reline etc.
  • Easiest to take in and out

What are their Dis-advantages?

  • least comfortable and well tolerated
  • least stable
  • least grip (retention)
  • often bigger and more bulky (unless a single front tooth)
  • require more muscle control
  • tend to break more easily
  • need to cover the palate if teeth are missing on both sides – this affects telling temperature and the chewing experience.

Immediate Dentures

If you are having several teeth extracted and require ‘immediate dentures’, you can have a temporary denture made. Before having your teeth removed your dental prosthetist will have an impressions taken of your mouth.

What are Immediate Dentures?

Immediate dentures are dentures that are put in ‘immediately’ after having a tooth extraction.

This could be to replace any number of teeth.

It may be that the prognosis is very poor for all your remaining teeth (as commonly happens with severe gum disease), in which case an ‘immediate complete denture’ or dentures (top and bottom) may be made.On the other hand, an ‘immediate partial denture’ could also be made as a temporary solution to allow the gums to heal up before you consider other treatment, if you require a single front tooth extracted. Or any combination in-between these two extremes.

After a tooth extraction your gums will heal and shrink as the bone in that area is no longer needed to support your tooth. Most changes occur during the first three months when one or more denture relines will often be needed and by 6 months your bone level should be pretty stable.

At this point the temporary relines can be replaced with a more permanent acrylic reline, a new denture or a fixed option such as a dental bridge or implant – whichever is the most appropriate for your situation.

This healing generally isn’t a problem at the back of your mouth and so immediate dentures tend only to be used where aesthetics would otherwise be a problem to allow you to continue to smile and socialise.

The amount of shrinkage and healing time will vary slightly from one person to another.

What are the Advantages of Immediate Dentures?

Immediate Dentures have a number of advantages:

  • No gap- You don’t have to walk around without teeth or with a gap in your smile
  • Better healing– It promotes better healing by stabilising the clot underneath
  • Less resorption– It loads your ridges straight away saying to your brain- “Hey, we need this bone for support” thus reducing the overall amount of resorption
  • Improved chewing- It allows you to continue to chew and function normally
  • Improved speech- It stops your speech being affected from having a space (if it is at the front of the mouth)
  • Easily adjusted– They can be easily relined when the gum shrinks up to cover any unsightly gap or improve the fit. A temporary bridge on the other hand may need to be re-made.
  • Better alternative– With immediate full dentures it allows the existing position of the natural teeth to be copied and the correct height of the dentures (OVD) to be somewhat gauged- instead of it being a total guess.There is however, another side to the coin discussed below.

WHAT ARE THE DISADVANTAGES OF IMMEDIATE DENTURES?

Since it is a denture, all the disadvantages of standard dentures could apply here, such as it will need to be taken in and out to be cleaned, biting and speech may be affected to begin with etc. Bear in mind, immediate dentures are a working progress/ temporary solution whilst healing occurs and further adjustments are part of the game- there is no way of avoiding them with the changes that occur to your jawbone.

If you are having an immediate denture, i.e. your teeth are removed and the denture put straight in, you do not have the luxury of a try-in stage (See-partial denture procedure) There is quite a lot of guesswork involved here, due to the ‘straight-in’ procedure. With a single tooth this generally isn’t too much of a problem, but with a full denture where the extension of the base is so crucial to your grip, a poor fit may result. Frequent adjustments and the use of denture fixative may be needed in-between the relines.

Are there any Alternatives to an Immediate Denture?

If it is a single tooth:

  • Do nothing

Just leave the space…

  • Temporary bridge

A temporary bridge can sometimes be made but this cannot be added to and so can become unsightly and need replacing when the gum shrinks. Temporaries, no matter how well they are made are not easy to clean and tend not to be the best for gum health; collecting a lot of plaque around them. Dentures can be removed which makes cleaning much easier and more efficient.

IF IT IS AN IMMEDIATE FULL DENTURE:

– Extract the teeth, wait for the gums to heal and then make a set of dentures- seriously not a good idea! You would be hard pressed to find a dentist who would agree to doing this.

– Provide a partial denture for the back teeth- to help the patient start getting used to wearing a plate, if they haven’t worn one before.. Then do an immediate, just for the front teeth, at an appropriate time.

-Make a creeping denture- where by teeth are added one at a time when they cause pain and need extracting- this can be useful for patients who may have difficulty adapting, though this can be inconvenient and expensive as additions and relines are needed.

If you already have a partial denture, you can have an immediate tooth addition- this is like a tooth addition, but the ‘immediate’ bit means that you are never without a space. This really only needs to be done for front teeth which affect your smile, otherwise it makes more sense to take the tooth out, let it heal a bit, then add a tooth to the denture- removing the guesswork.

Your denture will need to be sent away to the lab for an immediate addition, so you will be without it for a period of time. Our local dental laboratory can perform the tooth addition in half the time required because the denture does not have to be sent away. It is important to bear this in mind when organising work and social commitments. That said, a dental prosthetists will complete the treatment in a single day by having you come in early in the morning and then again later that same afternoon. On the second appointment, it is literally out with the tooth, in with the denture.

WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE FOR AN IMMEDIATE DENTURE?

The exact process and number of appointments depends on how many teeth the denture will be replacing.

The basic procedure is:

  • An impression is taken of your teeth and the bite recorded
  • The dentist tells the technician which tooth (or teeth) are going to be extracted
  • The technician grinds these off the model of your teeth to simulate the extraction and makes the denture in the normal way
  • The dentist confirms the right tooth has been added before the tooth extraction, then the tooth is made numb, removed and the denture is put straight in
  • A review appointment is needed to make adjustments- see immediate denture aftercare below.

WHAT SHOULD I DO AFTER AN IMMEDIATE DENTURE?

Special instructions for the aftercare of immediate dentures are needed.

Your dentist will give you instructions for the care and follow up of your immediate dentures. Since you have had an extraction, you should follow the extraction aftercare instructions regarding diet, painkillers, numbness etc.

We don’t want you to take your dentures out for 24 hours because you are likely to cause bleeding and the socket and gums may swell slightly meaning the denture might not fit back in.

Leaving them in will help to stabilise the clot, prevent bleeding and control this swelling and inflammation.

Once the denture is inserted, it is not ideal to keep taking them in and out to make adjustments, thus disturbing the clot that is trying to form. Because of this, the first night is generally not the most comfortable, the fit and bite may be slightly off and make chewing a little difficult. Hopefully though, it’s just a phase.

The dentist will take them out at the next appointment (usually the following day) and assess the socket and make any necessary adjustments to the fit of the denture. They will also show you how to put your dentures in and take them out and give you instructions on looking after your dentures.

Some pain and soreness is to be expected and as with any denture, further adjustments are likely to be needed. A temporary reline will be needed- as we have said, to compensate for the bone resorbing over the next few months, before a permanent reline replacement denture or other solution is made- around the 6 month mark.

Eating a healthy diet requires the ability to chew your food, which isn’t an easy task if you’ve just been fitted with new dentures. They can feel uncomfortable and awkward for several weeks – and adjusting to life with dentures may take a little time.

TIPS FOR EATING WITH NEW DENTURES

  • Start with a liquid diet that includes purees and soft foods such as apple sauce, puddings, cooked cereals, chopped boiled eggs and soup broth.
  • Be careful with hot liquids and foods so you don’t burn your mouth. You won’t be able to judge the temperatures correctly due to the insulating quality of the denture.
  • Don’t hold liquids in your mouth for a long time before swallowing. This can loosen bottom dentures.
  • You might find that foods taste different with dentures. Your sense of taste should improve over time.
  • When you’re ready to move on to solid foods, start with a mechanical soft diet. Be sure to cut your foods into tiny pieces.
  • Distribute your food evenly on both sides in the back of your mouth when you chew, this will help keep your dentures more stable while you eat.
  • Chew slowly and thoroughly before you swallow – don’t gulp down large pieces of unchewed food — you could choke on them.
  • Slice fresh fruits and vegetables into very thin slices or chop them into tiny pieces, so they are easy to chew, or cook them before serving.
  • Whole grain bread and cereals are good for you, but they may stick to your teeth – eat them with liquids to make them easier to chew and swallow.
  • Replace tough red meats with poultry, fish, eggs, and legumes, or choose stewed or slow-cooked meats.
  • Denture adhesives may help for eating foods that require a strong bite (like corn on the cob), but you may wish to avoid very hard or very sticky foods. 

A little soreness is to be expected as the muscles in your tongue and around your mouth get used to keeping your dentures in place.

A little extra saliva production is common, too. Be sure to keep your dentist updated if these problems don’t go away.

Once you fully adjust to your dentures, you should be able to eat almost anything, but there are some foods that may always be difficult to eat — foods that are hard, sticky or contain small particles. Be cautious with whole fresh fruits, hard crusty bread, tough red meats, peanut butter, chewing gum, sticky candy, fruits and berries with seeds, nuts, and coconut.