Dentures
Dentures in Cleveland OH
Everyone deserves to have a healthy, beautiful smile. Unfortunately, many people suffer from severely damaged or missing teeth, especially as they age. If you are missing all of your natural teeth or have severely damaged teeth, the compassionate dental team at Ryba Dentistry in Cleveland and Seven Hills, OH, is here for you. With the help of restorative dental treatments, including dentures, you can restore the health, comfort, and beauty of your smile.
Overview of Dentures
Dentures are prosthetics made of durable plastics, sometimes with metal substructures, designed for teeth replacement. They can help make chewing and speaking easier by giving patients additional teeth as well as improving the appearance of one's smile by filling in missing spaces. Dentures are one of three options to replace missing teeth; the other options for tooth replacement are dental implants and dental bridges. Basic dentures are the most affordable of the three replacement options and can be fabricated to replace one missing tooth, multiple teeth, or an entire arch of teeth.
Denture fabrication requires several steps to make sure the look, feel, fit, and function of the prosthesis is just right for the patient. These include:
-
taking preliminary impressions, either with a putty or using a digital scanner. An insert called a wax rim is fabricated using the preliminary impression as a guide.
-
Next, the wax rim is inserted and adjusted to establish the final height of the denture. The final desired tooth color is also chosen with the patient, and the wax rim is sent back to the dental laboratory.
-
Then, the technician at the lab sets teeth into the wax rim and sends the wax denture back to our office, where we try it in the patient's mouth. We make adjustments to the positioning of the teeth and make final improvements to the esthetics and fit during this step. The wax rim with prosthetic teeth is then sent back to the lab for final processing.
-
The final step is the delivery of the final denture. At this visit, we check the fit, retention, and esthetics of the denture and go over instructions for the use and care of the new prosthesis.
What Types of Dentures Are There?
At Ryba Dentistry, we are proud to offer several types of dentures to address your specific tooth replacement needs, including:
-
A removable partial denture is a type of denture to fill in one or more spaces on a single arch. Partials can be made of acrylic, metal, or a flexible plastic material. Material choice is dependent on which specific material will look and function best for a patient.
-
A complete denture is a full-arch prosthesis that replaces all teeth in a patient's arch.
-
An immediate denture is a type of complete denture that is placed the same day as a full arch dental extraction procedure. This type of denture requires an additional visit called a reline after a 6-8 week healing period in order to improve the fit of the denture.
-
Implant-supported dentures, also known as permanent dentures, are the most expensive type of denture but have the added benefit of being permanently placed in a patient's mouth. This type of denture requires the placement of several dental implants into the patient's jaw bone, onto which a full denture is permanently attached. Patients love them because they're not removable, won't become loose, and don't require removal to be cleaned.
Dr. Ryba can help you determine which type of denture is best for you at your initial consultation.
Can Dentures Look Natural?
Dentures can absolutely look natural. Well-made dentures are designed to look natural and can even be based on pictures from before patients lost their teeth, ensuring that the finished denture looks and feels great for the patient.
Do Dentures Feel Normal?
Many patients take several weeks or months to get used to speaking and eating with their dentures. Over time, dentures will feel natural to patients that have them and can improve speech phonation and chewing function.
Cost of Dentures
Dentures range in price depending upon how many teeth are being replaced. Some patients may also find that their existing dentures that no longer fit can be modified rather than remade, thereby lowering out-of-pocket costs.
Ryba Dentistry Offers Superior Dentures and Dental Services
If you would like to achieve a natural-looking, comfortable, healthy smile once again, help is available. Dr. Ryba and the knowledgeable dental team at Ryba Dentistry can help you improve the appearance and function of your smile quickly and comfortably with our restorative dental treatments. Give us a call today to schedule your consultation and learn more about how dentures could help you gain the smile you've always hoped for.