Dentures – Midland, TX

Effects of Missing Teeth

If you’ve lost multiple teeth, you probably have experienced some of these common effects: difficulty speaking or communicating clearly, embarrassment or a blow to your confidence, or trouble eating certain foods.

Even if you can’t easily see a lost tooth, the gap can greatly impact your smile’s health and appearance. Remaining teeth are prone to shift toward the space, creating wider gaps and changing how your upper and lower teeth match up. As a result, your ability to bite or chew could be compromised, and your teeth can completely alter your aesthetic.

What Qualifies You for Dentures?

Unless you choose to attach your dentures to implants, the requirements for these prosthetic teeth are pretty basic and easy. You just need to have a generally healthy mouth. If you have a cavity or infection, we’ll have to address the issue before we work on your dentures, but otherwise, basically anyone with multiple tooth loss can get these prosthetic teeth!

Alternative Tooth-Replacement Options

When we examine you for dentures, we can discuss all your restoration options and identify the one that will best serve you and your smile. Although dental implants require more—a healthy mouth and a strong jawbone—attaching your dentures to them not only makes your prosthetic teeth last significantly longer but also gives them additional strength and stability. In fact, these replacement teeth can restore up to 70 percent of your original biting force and definitely won’t slip while you eat or talk. In other words, if you haven’t seriously considered implant dentures before, you certainly should!

Partial Dentures

For patients who still retain a large number of healthy teeth, a partial denture allows them to maintain their teeth while filling in the open spaces with prosthetic ones, similar to a puzzle piece. A partial is also removable and uses clasps to anchor to healthy teeth. It is a good option for restoring both function and aesthetics to your smile.

Full Dentures

Full dentures are traditionally removable and rely on suction to your jawbone and a tight fit to stay in place, and some patients experience movement as they get used to eating and talking with their new appliance. For this reason, your denture may need to be relined periodically to ensure a snug fit.

Implant Dentures

An implant-retained denture is for those patients replacing all of their teeth that are looking for a stable and secure fit. This option also works well for patients who are currently living with a denture that doesn’t fit properly.

With implant dentures, a few dental implants are placed into your jawbone and your denture is designed to fit into them. This type of denture provides a secure fit that doesn’t allow for any movement or slippage. Implants also offer the added bonus of protecting your jawbone from the deterioration that occurs over time due to the pressure that traditional removable dentures place on it.

Psychological Benefits

Your teeth can have a surprisingly powerful impact on your mental health. For instance, instead of feeling self-conscious about the gaps in your smile, you can feel more confident in your appearance with dentures. With that confidence, you can show your smile more often, and did you know that smiling isn’t just an indication of happiness but also a cause? In other words, when you smile frequently, you feel better emotionally and mentally!

Clearer Enunciation

Although tongue twisters can be tricky even for those with a full set of teeth, pronouncing simple sounds can be particularly challenging for those with gaps in their smile. It can be isolating and frustrating to say the least! Dentures give your mouth necessary teeth for various sounds in language, enabling you to speak and communicate more clearly and helping you connect with those around you.

Improves Nutrition

Pretty soon after you adopt a soft foods diet, you’ll learn that your options are limited. In fact, many people with missing teeth turn to more processed foods because they are easier to bite and chew, but this leaves them without necessary nutrients and with unnecessary fat, sodium, and calories. On the other hand, dentures empower you to eat a more diverse, nutritious diet with fruits and vegetables, which can lead to more energy and better health overall.

Preserves Oral Health

Especially with implant dentures, your restorations can help keep your mouth healthier. Without teeth, your jaw collapses, giving you a sunken, older look as well as impairing your function. Traditional dentures give you a fuller look and keep any remaining teeth in their proper alignment. Implant dentures go a step further by strengthening the jawbone itself. As a result, you retain a more powerful bite and a more youthful facial shape when you work with us and replace your missing teeth.

Expands Opportunities

When you have an incomplete smile, it can be a little off-putting for others. In fact, it may close doors in career or social situations. In contrast, when you have a healthy-looking, beautiful smile, others can be more willing to give you a chance. In other words, dentures could help you meet someone new, get the job you want, or open all kinds of opportunities to you!

Factors that Affect the Cost of Dentures

Not two dentures are exactly the same because each patient is unique. To calculate the price of your dentures, we consider many factors, including the number of teeth that need to be replaced. For instance, a full denture will cost more than a partial denture. In addition, if you require other treatment, such as tooth extraction or gum disease therapy, before receiving your dentures, keep in mind that these procedures incur their own separate cost.

Are Implant Dentures More Expensive?

Implant dentures differ from traditional dentures in that they attach to the jawbone directly rather than rely on suction for stability. This process requires a complex placement procedure, which we can perform in-house, adding to the cost of treatment. As a result, implant dentures are typically more costly than normal dentures. However, when you take into account all the benefits implant dentures have to offer, the extra investment becomes well worth it.

Does Dental Insurance Cover Dentures?

It’s difficult to pinpoint a specific percentage of what insurance will pay for dentures because plans can vary. However, the vast majority of dental insurance benefits do cover at least part of the cost of dentures. Before we get started creating your custom dentures, we will look at your plan closely and let you know how much you’ll owe out-of-pocket. Our team has years of expertise in working with insurance, and we’ll try to find ways to help you save as much as possible.

Other Options for Making Dentures Affordable

If you don’t have dental insurance, we provide an alternative that could still help you avoid paying the full amount on your own. Our in-house dental plan enables you to get discounts on basically all restorative work for a reasonable annual fee. With or without insurance, if you still cannot afford to pay the out-of-pocket cost all at once, a third-party financier may be able to offer easier monthly payments. CareCredit, Alphaeon Credit, and GreenSky are all trusted companies we work with, and we can guide you through the application process.

Removable Dentures

If you have dental prosthetics you can take out of your mouth, there are several steps you need to take to keep them and your mouth in excellent shape. These steps aren’t difficult, but they will require a little bit of extra time and effort, but having a brilliant, confident smile is well worthwhile!

Remove After Eating

Even though suction keeps your dentures in place, it doesn’t mean little bits of food can’t find their way underneath your dentures. This situation can be not only uncomfortable but also conducive to oral infection. As a result, after eating, especially after meals, you need to take your dentures out of your mouth to rinse them off. Your mouth will feel much better!

Clean Your Restoration

At least once a day, you need to clean your prosthetic teeth. Most of the time, you can simply use a soft-bristled toothbrush and a non-abrasive toothpaste to scrub your dentures. This will keep bacteria-filled plaque to a minimum. Every few days, you can also consider using denture cleanser for more protection.

Keep Your Dentures Safe

In the process of taking your dentures out and cleaning them, it’s all too easy to accidentally drop them, which can damage the materials. Before you begin your maintenance and remove them from your mouth, be sure to have a towel out on and in the sink to catch them gently if they fall out of your hands.

Remove Dentures When You Sleep

To retain their shape, your dentures need to stay moisturized. When you sleep, however, your mouth produces less saliva; plus, many people sleep with their mouth slightly open, drying out the mouth further and welcoming more bacterial growth. As a result, you should take your dentures out and put them in a glass of water next to your bed to soak overnight.

Notice Changes

Regardless of how well you take care of your traditional dentures, the way they fit will slightly change over time. Pay attention and track moments when your dentures slip or feel loose and tell Dr. Boyles. It could be time for an adjustment or replacement to keep your dentures fitting securely.

All-on-X Dentures

Care for dentures that are secured with four to eight implants differs from that of traditional dentures. However, it looks exactly like maintaining natural teeth! Because your prosthetic teeth are firmly anchored to root-like posts, you can’t take them out, but you can brush and floss them just like real teeth. In fact, you need to do these simple tasks every day to prevent plaque buildup. You also need to continue coming for regular checkups with Dr. Boyles to make sure your implants and dentures—as well as your gums and jawbone—are in healthy condition.