Living with traditional removable dentures can often feel like walking on ice—you need to constantly be careful and alert, or you might slip unexpectedly. As traditional dentures begin to lose thewir fit, they also slip and slide in your mouth, even falling out if you’re not careful. Not only is this embarrassing, but it also makes eating, speaking, and laughing a constant challenge. In fact, studies have shown that traditional dentures have a strong negative impact on the nutritional condition and quality of life when compared to implant dentures, which use dental implants to anchor the denture directly to your jaw. If you’re looking for a more stable and functional tooth replacement solution, you need to consider implant dentures.
The Problems With Traditional Dentures
For many years, conventional dentures were the tried-and-true way to replace a full mouth of teeth. However, they’re far from a perfect solution. For starters, they don’t fully replace the functionality of your natural teeth, making it difficult or even impossible to eat certain foods. Their bulky pink base affects the way you taste food, and the prosthetic can look and feel unnatural. But their biggest drawback comes in what they don’t replace—your missing tooth roots.
When we lose a tooth and its corresponding root, we cease to receive the jawbone stimulation we need to maintain healthy bone density. Fairly quickly, the jawbone starts to deteriorate, changing the shape of your face. This is a big issue for traditional dentures, which rely on their fit along your gumline for stability.
As your jawbone changes, your once-tight dentures will begin to move or slip in your mouth. As their fit worsens, they make daily activities like eating and speaking more challenging. You can adjust their fit with a denture reline or by using adhesives, but the former is expensive, and the latter is a daily annoyance. The best way to solve all of these problems is to replace your old-fashioned denture with a modern implant denture.
Dental Implants Provide More Stable Denture Replacement
Implant dentures have been an excellent replacement option for traditional dentures for years, and thanks to mini dental implants, they’re now more affordable than ever. By stabilizing your denture with dental implants, you restore full functionality to your teeth and preserve your jawbone health. The implants replace your missing tooth roots, which prevents any jawbone deterioration that may occur. They also prevent your other teeth from shifting, and they fill the empty tooth socket, which can be a breeding ground for bacteria.
Their connection to your jawbone provides a sturdier base to connect a crown, bridge, or denture. These teeth are more like your natural teeth in look, feel, and function than older, traditional tooth replacement options. As a bonus, the tight fit with your jawbone means no irritation or soreness from poorly fitting dentures.
The Mini Dental Implant Advantages
While dental implants have been a strong option for tooth replacement for decades, the more modern mini dental implant does all that and more. They’re a smaller, thinner version of dental implants but are just as strong as their larger predecessors. Their thin profile allows to place them without an invasive surgical procedure, just a tiny pilot hole. This leads to less discomfort and a faster healing time. A single-piece design means fewer follow-up appointments, which saves you money—that’s right, mini implants are actually less expensive than conventional implants even while offering additional benefits. At The Mini Dental Implant Center of America (MDICA) in Scottsdale, AZ, Dr. Mann and Dr. Shatkin are experts in the usage and placement of mini dental implants.
Denture Replacement Options
There are two main types of implant dentures: removable and non-removable. At MDICA Scottsdale, we offer both based on our patient’s needs and preferences.
- Removable snap-on denture: This dental prosthetic “snaps on” to 4-8 mini implants to create a sturdy connection to your jaw. It’s removable at night, just like traditional dentures, and it eliminates a healthy portion of the bulky pink base, allowing you to taste food more naturally. This option is sometimes called an implant-retained denture.
- Non-removable roundhouse bridge: This full-arch bridge, which consists of zirconia teeth and no pink plastic base, is the closest look and feel to your natural teeth. We cement it onto 6-12 mini implants, which gives your new teeth the highest levels of support and functionality.
Which Denture Replacement Is Right for You?
If you’re sick of dealing with loose dentures or want to improve your oral health, consider a denture replacement using mini implants. You’ll be able to eat, speak, and smile like you used to, and you won’t ever have to worry about your denture slipping or sliding again. To learn more about these denture replacements, contact MDICA Scottsdale to schedule your free consultation. A more functional and stable smile is just a phone call away!