Dentures refer to a removable dental appliance that replaces missing teeth. Today, there is a focus on retaining everyone’s teeth but occasionally a tooth may be lost or need to be removed.
The reasons a tooth may need to be removed include:
- Your tooth develops a vertical crack that has travelled well beyond the nerve into the roots of the teeth.
- A tooth becomes unrestorable due to excessive decay and infection deep below the gums.
- Advanced gum disease results in the tooth becoming excessively loose and painful.
Why would we recommend a removable denture instead of a fixed solution such as a bridge or implant? Here are some of the reasons:
- In dental trauma cases or when you are undecided as to which options to choose, a removable denture is “tooth friendly” as it does not involve drilling of other teeth or any surgery … Being completely removable it can give you the time to consider the best options before proceeding to a fixed option.
- In dental implant cases, a denture gives the implant at least 3 − 6 months for it to fully heal with the surrounding bone before the crown is made.
- Patients who have had extensive gum cleaning but still suffer with advanced gum disease may need removable dentures, especially if there is a likelihood that further teeth may be lost in the near future.
- Existing denture wearers may be seeking a new denture to be made if they were comfortable and happy with their old dentures.
To the left is a picture of two types of dentures that have been made, the traditional metal-acrylic denture as well as the non-acrylic denture. (Image courtesy: Valpast.com)
Dentures, just like dental crowns can be made from various materials such as traditional acrylic (polymerised methyl methacrylate) with metal clasps to grip onto the teeth, metal / acrylic combinations (which fit better & last longer) or non-acrylic and non-metal dentures for people with suspected metal and acrylic monomer sensitivity. The last type of denture is sometimes made from a material called Valplast.