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Honeygo Village Dentistry - Traditional Dentures
There are many options when it comes to needing a dental prosthesis. Dentures are a great way to replace missing teeth for speech, eating, and facial fullness. A few options for removable prostheses include full dentures, immediate dentures, and partial dentures.
Full Dentures
A full denture replaces the teeth and surrounding gum tissues of an entire arch; mandible or maxilla. Once the patient has been cleared as a good candidate for a full denture, any tissue or bone modifications will be completed. Impressions (molds) will be taken of the ridge(s) of bone and color, shape, and size of new teeth is recorded. The impressions or models are sent to a denture lab where a rim of wax is created. The wax rim is tried in, teeth are placed into the wax, and any adjustments are made. The wax portion of the denture process may take multiple appointments. Once the teeth and wax are a perfect fit, the wax is replaced with an acrylic material. The dentures are then complete and delivered.
Immediate Dentures
An immediate denture goes through a similar process. Although, the wax portion of fabrication is skipped and the denture is delivered the same day as the teeth are extracted. There is an advantage to this denture because the patient does not have to go without teeth. Unfortunately, more relines may have to be done because the underlying gum tissues have not gone through the healing process.
Partial Dentures
A partial denture also goes through similar fabrication that a full denture does, except a partial only replaces some teeth and not the entire dentition of an arch. It may also contain metal clasps to help anchor itself to natural teeth for support.
Removable prostheses are a great option for replacing teeth and their function. They allow people to continue to eat, speak, and smile.
Other Options
You may also want to look into the various implant-supported dentures which are discussed in "Hybrid and Overdentures."
