Dentures Ponte Vedra Beach
Crafting Custom Dentures to Suit Your Individual Needs
Looking for affordable dentures in Ponte Vedra Beach? Dr. Perry and Dr. De Bonis take pride in helping patients replace damaged teeth and complete their smiles with dentures and denture implants. Renew your smile with dentures, with the added benefits of improved chewing, bite, and even speech.
Why Choose Ponte Vedra Family Dentistry for Dentures?
- Highly Skilled and Experienced Prosthodontist on Staff
- Customized Dentures & Extensive Treatment Planning
- Beautiful, Natural-Looking Materials Used
What Are Dentures?
Dentures are prosthetic teeth that can replace all or a portion of your natural teeth. They help to support the cheeks and lips so you get your smile back. Dentures mimic the look of natural teeth. They are removable and require special hygienic care.
There are many denture service options available to suit your unique needs.
Who’s a Good Candidate for Dentures?
Missing teeth can make small, everyday things, like eating and smiling, feel stressful or even embarrassing. Dentures are a reliable way to restore your smile, whether you’re missing a few teeth or an entire arch. If you’re unsure whether one of these prosthetics is right for you, call our office to schedule a consultation. Our dentists in Ponte Vedra Beach will check your mouth, review your oral health history, and help you decide if dentures are the best fit for your needs and lifestyle.
Effects of Missing Teeth
When teeth go missing, the effects can go far beyond how you look in the mirror. Many people start to avoid certain foods, making it harder to enjoy favorite meals or plan a balanced diet. Others see changes in the way they speak and become more self-conscious in social situations as a result.
Over time, the jawbone under lost teeth can begin to shrink, causing your cheeks and lips to look sunken or aged. Neighboring teeth may shift out of place as well, leading to bite problems and uneven wear.
Replacing missing teeth with dentures helps restore function, support your facial features, and protect your long-term oral health.
What Are the Qualities of a Great Candidate for Dentures?
You may be a great candidate for dentures if you have:
- Multiple Missing Teeth: You’re missing several or all of your natural teeth on the upper or lower arch.
- Teeth That Can’t Be Saved: Your remaining teeth are badly damaged, decayed, loose, or causing ongoing pain.
- Healthy Gums and Jawbone: Your oral tissues are healthy enough to support a new prosthetic.
- Realistic Expectations: You understand that using dentures is a skill you’ll need to work on, and you’re also committed to good oral hygiene.
During your visit to Ponte Vedra Family Dentistry, we’ll review all these factors and make sure dentures are a perfect fit for you.
Alternative Tooth-Replacement Options
Dentures aren’t the only way to rebuild your smile. Depending on your situation, our dentist in Ponte Vedra Beach may recommend:
- Dental Bridges: Dental prosthetics that “bridge” the gap between teeth, possibly replacing several teeth in a row.
- Dental Implants: Titanium posts surgically placed into your jawbone to anchor a crown, bridge, or denture in place.
- Implant Dentures: The best of both worlds when it comes to full-mouth functionality. A customized denture prosthetic held in place by 4 to 8 dental implants.
Learn More About Dental Bridges
Learn More About Dental Implants
Each option has its own benefits, costs, and maintenance needs, which is why it’s best to schedule a consultation with our team. We’ll walk you through every choice so you can be confident that your smile will look and feel just the way you want it.
Types of Dentures:
- Complete Dentures – If you have lost all the teeth in your upper or lower jaw, complete dentures may be the solution you’re looking for. They also provide a solution if your remaining teeth cannot be adequately repaired and must be extracted. Patients choosing this option will typically wait several weeks for the gums to heal before complete dentures can be worn.
- Immediate Dentures – When you are facing the prospect of extractions of damaged teeth, you might have concerns about spending days or weeks with missing teeth while you heal. In some cases, we can provide immediate dentures to you the same day as your extraction. This preserves your confidence in your smile. As your gums heal and shrink, these dentures will need to be adjusted to better fit your mouth.
- Overdentures – This prosthesis option features dentures that cover and rest upon one or more of your remaining natural teeth. They can also be supported by natural tooth roots or dental implants, including various types of implant technology. Overdentures are a versatile option for many patients. They can be either tooth-supported or implant-supported.
- Hybrid Dentures – If you’re concerned about dentures moving around in your mouth, creating discomfort or difficulty chewing, hybrid dentures may be right for you. They are a full row of prosthetic teeth but, unlike traditional dentures, they are fused to your jawbone. This is done via a dental implant, so they cannot be removed. They provide a natural look, and you don’t have to worry about removing them and cleaning them.
- Partial Dentures – This type of denture is used when some natural teeth remain in the mouth. It is a treatment plan that plays two important roles. First, it fills in the gaps caused by missing teeth and gums. Second, it protects the remaining natural teeth and gums from shifting in the mouth or experiencing bone loss.
How Dentures Are Made
Dentures are fascinating prosthetic devices that can replace lost teeth with beautiful and functional restorations, and it’s only natural to be curious about how they’re made after you’ve decided to receive them. Here’s a quick look at how these astounding appliances are manufactured from the friendly team at Ponte Vedra Family Dentistry.
What Are Dentures Made Of?
A denture consists of two components, those being the base and the artificial teeth. Here’s a quick look at these parts and what they are made from.
- The base: This structure serves as the foundation that anchors the artificial teeth in place and allows them to hold their position in the mouth. A denture base can be made from nylon, porcelain, resin, or metal, but we usually use acrylic since it can be easily shaded to match the color of your natural gum tissue. The bases of partial dentures may incorporate metal clips that allow them to connect to your remaining teeth for additional stability.
- The artificial teeth: The dental restorations mounted on dentures are typically made from resin or porcelain to ensure a lifelike appearance. While porcelain is the more popular option since it looks and feels more like natural dental enamel, we typically only use it for full dentures since it can be harsh on remaining teeth.
The Denture Creation Process
Each denture is completely customized through the following process:
- Step 1: Our dentist will take impressions of your bite using a thick paste. These are used to create a plaster model of your mouth.
- Step 2: This model will be sent to a dental lab where a skilled technician will use it to craft a wax replica of your gumline.
- Step 3: The technician will set artificial teeth into the wax with a device called an articulator and shape the restoration to make sure it looks like your gums.
- Step 4: These wax dentures will be sent back to our office in Ponte Vedra Beach so you can try them on. If they’re approved, we’ll send them back to the lab.
- Step 5: The technician will boil the dentures in a device called a flask to eliminate the wax portions.
- Step 6: After adding a liquid separator to prevent sticking, the technician will inject acrylic into the flask to replace the wax.
- Step 7: The technician will remove the plaster from the dentures and clean them with an ultrasonic bath.
- Step 8: After trimming away any excess acrylic, the technician will polish the dentures until they shine.
- Step 9: You’ll return to our office to try on your new dentures. After any final adjustments, you’ll be ready to begin using your restoration.
Adjusting to Your New Dentures
You can expect to feel some discomfort when you start wearing your dentures, but this should go away on its own as you get more practice speaking and eating with them. Eventually, you should find that your dentures feel very much like natural teeth. You can accelerate your adjustment process by eating a soft diet, exercising your facial muscles, or experimenting with an adhesive. However, contact our office if your discomfort seems to be getting worse after several days so we can make adjustments as needed.
What to Expect With Our Ponte Vedra Denture Services
Depending on your needs, we can craft a complete set or partial set of dentures to restore your smile and confidence. They will be unique to your mouth. They are created based upon measurements and exact impressions of your mouth in order to ensure the best possible fit.
Smiling with Dentures
Dentures are a common choice for people to replace missing teeth. This is because they provide a natural look and restore function that was lost along with natural teeth.
While it may take some time to get used to the feel of your dentures, your muscles and gums will adjust readily to the prosthesis. Many cosmetic dentistry patients experience some soreness and difficulty chewing with their dentures at first. However, these symptoms soon subside.
Caring for Dentures
Your set of dentures will require long-term care and maintenance in order to remain in good condition. Regular visits to our dental office for cleanings and other preventive care are necessary. However, you should also be prepared to properly clean your dentures at home. Of course, our professional staff provides all the information you’ll need to properly care for your new dentures and ensure they last many years.