Denture Problems

Before providing Dentures to our patients we have to take impressions and we need 3/4 visits. Its more complicated to perform all these visits in a domiciliary environment. Finally it is also dependant on the attention span of the patient.

Succesful denture wearing requires and adjustement period. At first a new denture may feel loose and unstable. The denture may feel bulky, make the tongue feel crowded. The mouth may feel sore and irritated. After a few weeks the oral tissues adjust and these problems decrease.

Wearing dentures may affect pronunciation.

Patient safety and risk is the priority and this will always be taken into consideration when our Clinical Dental Technician assesses each patient.

If need to be we reffer you to the hospital.

For more detalis call us for your free appointment consulation.

Pain associated with dentures

• This may be due to ill-fitting or occlusal errors, pressure on bony protrusions or nerves and teeth or roots erupting under the denture base.
• Its usually painfull when you are eating. Denture may hurt you a lot and create ulcers. Nothing you can do about it yourself. You need to come back for denture ease to your dentist or clinical dental technician, preferably to the same one who did your dentures.

Other Problems in New Dentures

Poor fit. Its either made poorly or patient mouth changed over time, i.e. bone resorption (shrink), poor muscles control, and dry mouth.

• If its bone resorption only, dentures can be modified by relines or rebases. If the bone shrank too much, we might advise patient to use Fixodent or poligrip or any other adhesives. Or patient might consider implants.

• If its muscles, then it’s also depends what caused it. If its stroke or Alzheimer’s disease etc., then we might try to help to modify the teeth arrangements and change shape of the teeth to add to mechanics of it.

  Sometimes patients use Fixodent or poligrip for too long and muscles become very lazy. Depends on the age of the patient, we might try to offer rehabilitation program and see if its helps. Sometimes poor teeth occlusion makes dentures unstable (99% case with NHS dentures in UK)

• If it’s a dry mouth, we do a little investigation. If it’s a medication, then we inform patient and see if patient can stop taking it (not realistic, as a lot elderly patients taking a lot of medication). We are advising to limit carbs and sweets.

  Dry mouth can be stress related and self-eliminating later. It can be cancer therapy that causing it as well or any blockages of salivary glands. We have very rudimentary knowledge of the causes of it and cannot help much but can advise to use artificial saliva gels for pt. Dry mouth causing pain and ulcerations and influencing instability of the dentures.

Overall ill fitted dentures can cause pain, ulcers, instability, embarrassment, can affect TMJ joint (joining mandible (low) jaw together with maxillae (upper jaw). If patient has bad occlusion then muscle need to compensate for it and its complicated movements disturbed. If occlusion is too high, it can also traumatise the lower alveolar bone and TMJ as well, can give headaches.

Why Dentures Breaking

Poorly fitted dentures are unstable and as a result will be more prone to break (Stresses are not propagated evenly).

1. Dentures were cleaned in the bleach and become fragile with time, and breaking all the time.
2. Dentures are porous and collecting bacteria, patient cannot clean it. It’s creating offensive odour from the patient mouth. Was produced like this in the lab.
3. New dentures might be needed.
4. Teeth are delaminating from the dentures (no bond between teeth and acrylic). Poor lab procedures (need new).
5. Pt do not like the way teeth look. Colour, position,size,shape of the teeth (need new).
6. Difficult to clean dentures. Either there are a lot of grooves due to lab procedures and it’s not polished well, or patient dexterity is very poor.
7. Residents of the care homes tend to lose their dentures easily. ID TAGS with the name of the patient can sort this problem.
8. Pt cannot get used to the new dentures.We need to investigate the reason.