Dentures are an artificial set of teeth that replace all of a patient's upper or lower teeth. Dentures come out and in the wearer's mouth. They are removable. Dentures are made of plastic teeth with a gum colored plastic base. Good dentures fit the gums underneath the dentures very well.

          There are several dental appointments needed when making really nice dentures.

                    1. Denture impression - the dentist makes an exact copy of the patient's mouth.
                    2. Jaw relations - how the upper and lower jaw fit together is recorded.
                    3. Denture try in - how the denture looks and how it fits together with the other arch
                                   is checked.
                    4. Denture delivery - the final denture is adjusted and fitted into the patient's mouth.
                    5. Denture adjustment - adjustments are made to the denture over several weeks.

          A patient with dentures still has to see the dentist routinely because dentures must be relined regularly. When dentures wear down a denture patient's face starts looking like there's nothing in her mouth. This is called over-closed.

          Natural looking denture teeth should show when a denture patient smiles. When too much gum colored denture base shows, the denture patient's smile looks too gummy.

          There is an alternative to wearing traditional dentures. The art and science of dental implants has advanced tremendously over the past decade and in most cases dental implants can be placed into a patient's jaw bones in order to replace missing teeth with fixed bridgework that feels much like your original teeth did.

          Making dentures is an art and it takes some time to make a really nice denture that looks great and chews well. You are welcome to make a denture consultation appointment with our dentures dentist, Dr. Mark Padolsky, by calling  404-874-7428.