If you’ve been missing your teeth for some time now, getting them replaced can bring renewed confidence and take years off your appearance. It will feel great to have your smile back. Though no one wants to lose all their teeth, sometimes there is no other choice.

When replacing missing teeth, you basically have two options: dental implants or dentures. You may click here to visit our dental implants page and learn about that option.

When it comes to dentures, we have several options available for you:

Complete Removable Dentures

A Complete Denture is a removable prosthesis that replaces all teeth within an arch, thus some patients have only an upper denture, some only a lower and some have both upper and lower complete dentures.

Advantages of complete dentures:

  • Least costly treatment for replacing all teeth in an entire arch
  • Esthetically pleasing
  • Shortest treatment time from start to finish

Limitations of complete dentures:

  • Your chewing efficiency will be reduced by over 50%. Of course, the better fit you are able to get with your dentures, the more efficiency you’ll have. However, even the best-fitting dentures significantly reduce your chewing ability compared with natural teeth.
  • They slip around. The lower dentures are particularly susceptible to that because they merely rest on a ridge with nothing to really keep them in place. Therefore, whenever you talk or chew they will move.
  • You’ll lose your jawbone. This is an important limitation that needs to be carefully considered when making your decision regarding tooth replacement. Many patients are able to deal with the other denture issues, maintaining a happy standard of living. Unfortunately, this is one issue that cannot be dealt with by a good attitude and adjustment of expectations. When your teeth are removed your body begins to re-absorb the minerals in your jawbone because they are no longer needed to support the roots of your teeth. This is known as facial collapse. After about ten or twenty years, there will no longer be enough bone structure left to support your lower dentures, and other measures will have to be taken to ensure your ability to chew.

Ready to feel amazing about your oral health?

Schedule an appointment or Contact us with any questions. Our caring and dedicated staff can't wait to hear from you!