Denture Problems
Here is a list of the eight most common denture problems that patients usually experience. 1. Dentures making you gag and feeling sick/retching. A denture is essentially a foreign body and some patients gag or gip when they have to wear dentures. Many patients gag or gipe initially but over a period of days or weeks, they become accustomed and it no longer bothers them. If the giping or gagging feeling continues, then a different design of denture may need to be considered or a different alternative treatment altogether. 2. Rubbing, pinching and gripping dentures, especially new dentures, can rub on the skin inside the mouth called the mucosa. When this happens, it becomes painful and ulcers develop. You can either take your dentures out until the mucosa has fully healed up or you can ask the dentist to adjust your dentures accordingly.
3. Dentures not being sufficiently tight is an all too common problem. This is known as inadequate retention. Inadequate retention of dentures has several causes and sometimes, dentures just cannot be made any better than they already are. This is especially true of full dentures rather than partial dentures. Lower dentures also have poorer retention than upper dentures. In addition, the amount of remaining gum you have also has a bearing on the retention of dentures. 4. Infection can develop under dentures and a common type of infection is called denture stomatitis. This usually develops when the oral hygiene around a denture is poor and when the dentures are kept in overnight whilst asleep. Denture stomatitis can spread and can cause other problems with the oral mucosa, especially soreness at the angle of the mouth around the lips. It can be cured but may take time to fully eradicate. 5. Dentures can, if incorrectly designed, cause damage to the remaining teeth or gums in case of partial dentures. Normal amongst the profession are acrylic dentures also known as gum strippers. The design of the partial denture is very important in reducing this damage but also a patients oral hygiene. 6. Dentures can break at any time. Sometimes they break when a patient drops them but they can also break with continued use in the mouth. A denture reflexes under normal chewing forces and eventually can break due to fatigue. 7. Dentures can be un-aesthetic if clasps are used and these clasps are in the aesthetic zone. The aesthetic zone is usually around the canine and premolar areas where clasps can be utilised. Alternatives to this can be by using tooth coloured clasps instead of stainless steel ones or by using flexi dentures such as valplast and flexite dentures which have tooth coloured thermoplastic acrylic as clasps. 8. Denture teeth can wear away, especially if they are opposed by natural teeth and the enamel of natural teeth is harder than the plastic of the denture teeth. This can reduce chewing efficiency but also cause changes to the bite.
Most common denture problems can be treated; however , every patient is different.