Get a grip!
Dentures can be really wonderful when you first get them fitted. Your dental technician will probably have spent a good amount of time and effort to make sure that your dentures grip your gums and for a while, they will do a pretty good job of allowing you to eat with aplomb and speak clearly. Trouble is, that in Richmond, dentures often become loose way before they actually wear out, and can start sliding around in your mouth.
It’s not the fault of your dentures, they are just the same size as when they were fitted. It’s because over time your gums will have receded and your jawbone will have shrunk and lost density. Take a selfie of your jaw and then compare it with pictures of yourself before you lost teeth. If you have full dentures, you will probably be able to see that your jawbone has lost some height and your chin is pointier and nearer to the end of your nose than it used to be. This isn’t age. This is resorption.
What is resorption?
Resorption is the technical term for the process by which bone that is no longer in use starts to dissolve itself, returning the nutrients into the bloodstream for use elsewhere in the body. The jawbone starts to resorb when there are no longer any vibrations being transmitted into it via the tooth roots. These are the signals that tell the bone it is still in use, so even if you are chewing away like a good’ un with your dentures and have a fine jaw muscle, the bone will still be dissolving itself. It’s not very fair is it?
Stabilising dentures in Richmond
The good news for denture wearers is that there is a way to stimulate your jawbone to keep it healthy and strong, and to stabilise your dentures. That way is to have special dental implants fitted and to get your dentures customised to fit on top of them.
At Sheen Dental Implants we can carry out this procedure in a day under local anaesthetic. To find out more about how we can use dental implants to improve dentures in Richmond, come in for a consultation.