Hi. My name is Vik Mittle. I am a board certified periodontist at Island Dental Associates in Franklin Square. Some patients ask me, “My dentures are loose. Is there a way that I can help stabilize them?” And the answer is yes.
Here’s the problem…What happens over time is if you wear dentures the bone has a tendency of resorbing or dissolving away. When this happens your dentures become loose. So either (A) we fabricate new dentures which inherently will still not fit perfectly…they’re still going to be loose. Or, (B) what we can do is stabilize your dentures with dental implants.
Most dentures do wobble…especially on the lower because as you talk your tongue and lips have a tendency to put pressure on and move the dentures, especially while you chew. The great thing with dental implants is that they can help stabilize your dentures.
There are two dental implants that are strategically placed in the right position. And what we do is we attach these little pieces on top. Then we fabricate you a new denture underneath, and what we do is we actually place these attachments underneath the dentures. And once everything heals up, about three or four months after dental implants are placed, what we do is we go ahead, we make your custom-made denture and we snap it in…and now your denture is stable.
You can eat anything you like, apples, steak, corn on the cob, etc. It’s very comfortable, and no messy adhesive is ever needed. You don’t need to swallow the toxic glue or adhesive that can cause a lot of stomach problems. So in essence dental implants can help stabilize your dentures on the lower. The more implants you have, the more stable it is, sort of like the legs on a table. The more legs you have on a table, the more stable it is. The more dental implants you have, the more stable it is.
With the denture on top there’s this acrylic that’s covering the roof of the mouth. It’s very uncomfortable. You can’t taste your food. Some people have a gag reflex and it’s very uncomfortable, they feel like they have to gag all the time. Well, again, dental implants can solve that. You have to put at least four implants, strategically placed, so there’s two in the front, two near the back area, and if we can, again, ideally the more implants you have the more stable it is, but a minimum of four implants. And we can make your denture on top palette-less so it doesn’t cover the roof of the mouth, and again, stabilizes, snaps in, and now it can’t come in and out of your mouth. It’s rock solid.
If you have any questions regarding denture stabilization with conventional implants, mini implants, please call the number below for a complimentary consultation and see how I can help you.
