Resources

Replacing your natural teeth is more than trusting someone with your smile… your whole image is at stake. Make sure you entrust this delicate task to a specially trained professional! Your Denturist is an expert in design, construction, insertion, and adjustment of removable dentures, as well as dentures on implants.

Our expertise, meticulous approach, and professionalism make us the best possible choice to help you drive the maximum benefit from dental prosthetics technology.

“Denturists are your denture specialists!”

What is Bone Resorption?

The term resorption describes the process of shrinking that occurs in the jawbone once the teeth have been removed. This applies to both the upper (maxilla) and lower (mandible) jaws.

After the extraction of one, several, or all of your teeth, the bone that once supported the teeth resorbs, shrinking quite substantially. This shrinking is a process that goes on for the rest of your life. There are several factors that affect the amount of shrinkage, including:

• The trauma of the procedure to remove the teeth, excessive trauma, or fracture of a root before or during extraction may lead to excessive bone shrinkage
• Facial trauma, such as an accident, usually causes excessive bone loss in the area after trauma
• The wearing of ill-fitting dentures causes excessive bone loss, including dentures that have been relined or are in excess of five years old
• Diet and nutrition
• The length of time you have been without natural teeth (the longer you have worn a full denture, the more bone shrinkage you will experience)
• For partial denture wearers, the loss of back teeth on either the upper or lower arch

 Why Are My Gums Shrinking?

This statement is somewhat misleading. The shrinking that most people speak of is actually the bone. This is why the lifespan of a denture is much less than most would expect. A reasonable life span for a denture is approximately five to eight years. In our office, the average age of a denture is 15 to 50 years. The longer dentures are worn, the more bone is lost. We lose approximately one millimetre of bone height every year in the lower jaw. Unfortunately, by the time we have worn dentures for thirty years, there is typically nothing for the denture to grip.

Now That I Have Dentures, Do I Need an Annual Exam?

Your dentures and tissues should be checked annually. Damage to the oral tissues can take place without your awareness. Early detection and elimination of tissue inflammation is important to minimize shrinkage of the supporting bone and tissue. By keeping the tissue healthy, your dentures will continue to fit correctly.

Your Denturist will also check for looseness of the denture due to tissue changes, stains and calculus deposits on the denture, and your bite position (how evenly your teeth close together). It’s not just the dentures that change over time, your mouth is continually changing. It is important for your Denturist to check on your oral condition so you are able to continue enjoying the benefits of a well-fitting, quality denture.

How Should I Clean My Dentures?

Denture Cleaning Instructions

Each night before going to bed, remove your denture(s). To remove any food particles, brush lightly with a denture brush. Put your denture(s) in the NovaDent™ denture cleaner and soak overnight. Use a soft bristle toothbrush to clean any remaining natural teeth and to stimulate the tissue where no teeth are present. Clean your palate and tongue with the soft bristle toothbrush as well. In the morning, when you remove your denture(s) from the cleaning solution, make sure the denture is rinsed thoroughly with warm water before placing it back in your mouth.

Brushing Your Dentures

To keep your dentures clean, you should clean them after every meal with a soft bristle brush. They should be brushed, inside and out, using lukewarm water and mild soap or non-abrasive denture toothpaste.

An acrylic surface that has been scratched by an abrasive substance easily absorbs saliva, which carries food particles that cause stains. As a result, denture maintenance is much more difficult.

Plaque is an invisible bacterial film that forms gradually, not only on natural teeth, but on dentures as well. Once it hardens, plaque turns into calculus, which is an open invitation to bacteria, irritations, gum disease, digestive problems, and bacterial stomatitis. These are a few of the harmful consequences of inadequate denture hygiene.

It is also recommended that you gently brush your tongue, gums, and the roof of your mouth with a moistened, soft-bristled brush. This daily one-minute massage stimulates your circulation and tones your gum tissue, while ridding your mouth of bacteria. This also helps keep your breath fresher longer.

TIP: Always brush your denture over a sink full of water, or a towel. This way, if you happen to drop your denture, the impact will be considerably lessened.

Soaking Your Dentures

Prolonged exposure of your denture to air can cause discolouration and dry out the acrylic, making it more brittle. When you remove your denture for the night, keep it in a covered container, filled with water or a special soaking solution. We recommend Nova Dent, which can be purchased at our clinic or through a pharmacy. Never use bleach to clean or soak your denture. It can weaken the structure of the denture and discolour the acrylic. Bleach will not work as a whitening agent.

Why a Denturist Versus Other Dental Professionals?

Your Denturist listens to your needs. They personally handle every step in the construction of your denture — from the first impression to the last adjustment. There is no middleman in the fabrication of your new denture. The Denturist has an on-site, state-of-the-art facility to create your personalized dentures.

Your Denturist is the ideal person to instruct you in the daily maintenance of your denture. They can also tell you how often your denture should be adjusted in order to ensure the comfort, effectiveness, and aesthetic appearance that you expect.

I Have Dentures, Why Can't I Eat All the Foods I Want?

Most denture users alter their diet to accommodate their chewing capacity. This can affect their likes and dislikes when it comes to food choices. Denture users usually have excluded anything that requires hard chewing (raw vegetables, fresh fruit, seeds, nuts, and meats) and may, in fact, rationalize why they do not eat them.

Successful denture wearers are adaptable. They control a denture with their facial muscles and are capable of ignoring looseness or movement, provided it does not cause pain. They can ignore food beneath the denture or, at the very least, tolerate it. Unfortunately, some denture wearers are unable to forget the foreign object in their mouth. They are keenly aware of the movement of the denture in their mouths and the food that gets under them. Their speech, confidence, and self-esteem are affected by the dentures. They are aware of the foods they avoid, or consume minimally, and they miss them.

Successful denture wearers have lowered their expectations to the extent that denture wearing has become their new normal. Dental implants provide countless improvements in the ability to chew. Food choices broaden and denture discomfort becomes a thing of the past.

What is Bone Mass?

Regardless of what part of the body we talk about, bone has evolved to perform a very specific task. It must function under pressure in a weight-bearing capacity. We lose bone mass and bone density if our bones are not allowed to function the way they were intended. Some examples include:

• Astronauts in space (zero gravity) lose bone mass simply by not having weight to bear down on their bones and muscles (improved by resistance training)
• Those with spinal injuries, having lost the ability to walk, lose incredible volumes of both muscle and bone

We are familiar with the advice given to the more mature element of our population (especially those with osteoporosis): “You must exercise, especially weight-bearing exercise!”

Bone cells everywhere in your body, including your mouth, require pressure to build stronger bone. Teeth, when present, transmit biting force from the cutting surface down the root of the tooth to the jawbone. The bone cells (osteoblasts) are stimulated only when there is pressure from biting on natural teeth. Dentures do nothing to stimulate this biting pressure. The force a denture exerts on bone is traumatic and causes the bone to shrink excessively. 

Dental implants behave in a way similar to natural teeth. They transmit biting force down the implant and into the surrounding bone. Implants stimulate bone and eliminate the bone loss associated with conventional dentures.

How Long Do Dentures Last?

Your dentures will not last indefinitely. The denture teeth and base will wear and stain over time. The tissues of the mouth are undergoing continual change so dentures will require adjustment or relining placement from time to time. The time will vary and depend upon many factors, such as individual tolerances, habits, and the length of time you have had dentures. The average life of a denture is about seven to twelve years.

Your Denturist is sensitive to your well-being and to the general condition of your dentures. Your Denturist also has the experience and expertise to advise you on your best treatment plan and how to proceed.

Information on Denture Repairs

• Once a denture has been repaired, it is most likely to break again
• Dentures break at their weakest point and also at the point where the stresses are greatest, most often down the middle of a full denture or with a front tooth breaking off
• In most circumstances, merely repairing a denture is sufficient to stop the denture from breaking again. However, if the dentures are ill-fitting in any way, they are likely to break again.
• Multiple repairs can be done on a denture, however, repairing merely treats the symptom and does not address the root cause of the problem
• The life expectancy of a denture is seven to twelve years with proper care and maintenance
• Denture fractures and fit problems typically occur after the denture is approximately two years old
• The denture user usually adapts to the inability of the denture to perform adequately, and they come to accept looseness as normal