If you, a friend, or a loved one wears dentures that spend much of the time either floating around in the mouth or, even worse, sitting in a glass, then there are many new solutions to this problem. Many people wear their dentures for too many years before they are remade or even relined. Sometimes this is due to the fact they weren’t told to get them checked every year. Sometimes they just can’t afford to keep up with the maintenance. A lot of the time, they just “get used to them” and forget about doing anything further about them.

The American Dental Association recommends that dentures be redone or relined every 3-4 years. The main reason is that the bone supporting the dentures will erode away if they don’t fit correctly, hence they get “loose.” When this happens simple biting becomes a chore and a hopeless feeling of ever being able to bite into an apple again takes place. Many people are fine with this feeling, but many others wish that something could be done about it.

One solution could be as simple as remaking the denture to the eroded ridges. Sometimes this will improve the bite tremendously. Another solution could be to reline the inside of the denture to fit better. Most dentists are capable of doing these procedures which are the least expensive.
To truly have “Tight Dentures” the placement of Mini Dental Implants can be a Godsend. These tiny, FDA approved Titanium implants have revolutionized dentistry and have made thousands of denture wearers able to “bite into that apple.” A Mini Dental Implant, once placed, can anchor an upper or lower denture and keep it from dislodging and “floating” around in the mouth. No need for all that goopy denture adhesive – it becomes a thing of the past. The upper denture can be so well anchored with “Minis” that it can be horseshoe shaped and not have plastic in the roof of the mouth! Most of the time, to do this, several implants have to be placed.

Another great advantage of the Mini Dental Implants is that they are one-third to one-half the cost of conventional implants. And most of the time they only require one visit! Next time we’ll talk about how Mini Implants can be used to replace one or more missing teeth.
Here Falmouth Dental Arts we are able to provide this superb service. Let us know if you, a friend or a loved one is interested!