Complete and partial dentures

Partial dentures
An important step in maintaining a healthy smile is to replace missing teeth. When teeth are missing, the remaining ones can change position, drifting into the surrounding space. Teeth that are out of position can damage tissues in the mouth. In addition, it may be difficult to clean thoroughly between mal-aligned teeth. As a result, patient runs the risk of tooth decay and periodontal (gum) disease, which can lead to the loss of additional teeth.

A removable partial denture fills in the space created by missing teeth and fills out your smile. A denture helps you to properly chew food, a difficult task when you are missing teeth. In addition, a denture may improve speech and prevent a sagging face by providing support for lips and cheeks.Removable partial dentures usually consist of replacement teeth attached to pink or gum-colored plastic bases, which are connected by metal framework. Removable partial dentures attach to your natural teeth with metal clasps.

Complete dentures
If you’ve lost all of your natural teeth, whether from periodontal disease, tooth decay or injury, complete dentures can replace your missing teeth and your smile. Replacing missing teeth will benefit your appearance and your health. Without support from the denture, facial muscles sag, making a person look older. You’ll be able to eat and speak—things that people often take for granted until their natural teeth are lost.

When all the teeth are missing a complete denture prosthesis is fabricated in order to restore the complete form and function along with esthetics. Steps involved in making a complete denture are :- first a primary impression is made on which the working models and special trays are fabricated, second step is to define the borders of the dentures and sealing the borders for the upper as well as the lower dentures gives us the necessary retention.

Then a secondary or the final impression is made which is the master impression on which the final prosthesis is fabricated. Subsequently a jaw relation is carried out to accurately record the relation of the upper jaw to the lower jaw. According to this relation then a trial denture is made and checked for the final fitting in the patients mouth ,when the trial denture fits perfectly or any final adjustment is carried out if required. Now the denture is finished and polished and inserted.