Complete Dentures
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Complete dentures cover your entire jaw, either upper or lower. Some people call them "plates." Complete dentures rest directly on the gum that covers the bone.
Complete dentures are custom made for you. The process involves multiple appointments, usually about five. The dentist first takes impressions of your mouth. At later visits, you and the dentist select the size, shape and color of the artificial teeth.
Learning to chew food with complete dentures takes patience and practice. You might have to cut your food into smaller pieces than you did in the past when you had your natural teeth.
On occasion, one or more natural teeth are kept when a denture is made. These teeth usually have root canal treatment and are shortened to fit under the denture. This type of denture is known as an overdenture.
Dentists like to maintain a few natural teeth and replace the missing teeth with an overdenture if possible. This has several advantages:
Your natural teeth help preserve bone.
Your natural teeth bear some of the chewing pressure. This reduces pressure on other areas of the jaw.
Your remaining teeth make the denture more stable and less likely to shift in your mouth.
You feel a better sense of where your jaw is in space and the pressure you are placing on the denture if you have not lost all of your teeth.
You may find it easier to accept wearing dentures if you have kept some teeth.
Lower dentures tend to be more difficult to keep in your mouth than
upper dentures. Therefore, an overdenture can be particularly helpful for the lower jaw. However, it is an option for almost anyone who has a few teeth remaining.
Teeth that will be preserved with an overdenture must meet certain standards of health. Canines and premolars are the most common teeth selected because of their root length and position in the jaw.
The teeth will have to be shaped to fit the denture. Shaping may expose the tooth's living pulp. For this reason, the teeth usually need root canal treatment. This removes the pulp (the nerve of the tooth) and replaces it with filling material.
The teeth that will remain are covered with thin metal castings called copings. They fit into openings in the denture. Attachments also can be put on the copings to help retain the denture in the mouth. On occasion, a natural tooth can be kept in the mouth without a metal coping. If this is done, the dentist will prescribe fluoride drops. These should be used in the overdenture to prevent decay of the tooth.
Overdentures also can fit over implants instead of natural teeth. In fact, implants originally were developed to give people "artificial roots" for bridges or dentures in the lower jaw. The denture can fit onto the implants directly, or onto a metal bar between implants.
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