Maintaining Your Dentures: Adjustments and Repairs
While we customize dentures to fit the patient‘s jaw and not cause irritation, the jaw may change shape over time. Resorption is the process in which the body leaches calcium from the bone structure underneath the jaw once there are no teeth to stimulate the jawbone. Since there is no stimulation, the body takes the calcium and distributes it to other areas of the body over time. Due to this process, the jawbone recedes and the dentures may not fit as well as before. With this in mind, we can provide continued maintenance of the dentures.
Keep Up Proper Denture Care
In other cases, people will break or damage a pair of dentures due to improper care or eating hard foods immediately after receiving dentures. Most dentures also require patients to remove them each night and soak them in a solution while they sleep. When people do not follow the proper steps each night, they risk more damage to the dentures and their own health. Fortunately, we can ensure that dentures fit correctly and help patients keep up proper denture maintenance with regular appointments.
Making Adjustments to Dentures
If the dentures crack, chip, feel loose, or break, do not attempt to fix them without a professional's service. At Arizona Dental Service, Inc., we have the skills and expertise to accurately fix dentures. Far too often, people will attempt to adjust the dentures themselves or even repair them without scheduling an appointment. We do not recommend this since it can result in needing to spend more money on repairs and risk harming the gums.
Dentures are more complex than some people realize since we customize them to match each individual patient's teeth. Some people may only need to replace a few teeth, while others will need to replace all of their teeth. With that in mind, there is no one-size-fits-all pair of dentures. Thus, damaging or breaking a pair of dentures will require specialized work from a professional. While dentures are durable, they are not indestructible.
In some cases, people will purchase over-the-counter glues or reline materials to repair dentures in an attempt to avoid a visit. Yes, these products are dental tools, but they do more than good. People who attempt to adjust or repair dentures have a high chance of damaging the dentures further. These over-the-counter products can also contain chemicals that can be dangerous to one's health.
Call Us to Schedule an Appointment Today
Thanks to the proper training and expertise, our team can ensure that patients continue to wear dentures that fit correctly and comfortably. Even though patients with full dentures will not have any real teeth, the patients will need to make regular appointments. The gums and mouth are susceptible to infection when one does not take care of the dentures. During these appointments, we will help ensure that the dentures fit correctly and are not causing any additional health problems.
We will adjust or repair the dentures so that the patient will be able to use them comfortably on a regular basis. We will send out regular reminders when it is time for another checkup appointment. If you need a new pair of dentures, adjustments or more information on dentures as a tooth replacement, give us a call at (512) 846-2011 today.
New Patients and Emergency Appointments Welcome
Questions Answered on This Page
Definition of Denture Terminology
Alveolar Bone
The alveolar bone is the bone surrounding the root of the tooth that keeps the tooth in place.
Clasp
A clasp is a device that holds a removable partial denture prosthesis to the teeth.
Denture Base
The denture base is the part of the denture that connects the artificial teeth with the soft tissue of the gums.
Edentulous
Edentulous is a term that applies to people who do not have any teeth.
Periodontal Disease
Periodontal disease is a condition that causes inflammation of the gingival tissues and membrane of the teeth, leading to tooth loss without professional treatment.
Pontic
Pontic is another term for an artificial tooth on a fixed partial denture.
Rebase
Rebase is the process of refitting denture prosthesis by replacing the base material.
Reline
Reline is when a professional resurfaces the surface of the prosthesis with a new base material.
Resin/Acrylic
Resin and Acrylic are resinous materials that can be components in a denture base.
Stomatitis
Stomatitis is the inflammation of the tissue that is underlying a denture that does not fit properly. It can also result from other oral health factors.
