Do you rely on dentures to bite, chew, enunciate your words, and smile confidently? As one of the oldest forms of dental restoration, the concept of dentures has stood the test of time, and today, they remain an essential part of life for patients who’ve suffered significant tooth loss.
Nevertheless, even modern dentures leave room for improvement, and if you or someone you know has worn them for a while, then you may be familiar with their tendency to lose their grip. Today, we explore why your dentures are loose, and how dental implants improve your dental prosthetic to eliminate uncomfortable slipping for good.
Tooth Loss and Jawbone Deterioration
You might assume that loose dentures are a natural result of wear and tear. Though your dental prosthetic can wear down from use, the real reason why dentures lose their grip lies with your mouth and jaw’s responses to tooth loss.
When healthy teeth and their roots are stimulated by biting and chewing, they signal your body to send your jawbone enough nutrients to support them. While dentures replace the chewing portions of your lost teeth, called the crowns, they do not replace the roots below your gum line, and the loss of these roots can lead to nutrient deficiency and subsequent jawbone deterioration.
As your jawbone shrinks from the deficiency (known as jawbone deterioration), so too does your dental ridge. Eventually, the denture that was designed to fit snugly over your gums can become too large for the new, smaller shape of your dental ridge.
More Secure Dentures with Dental Implants
To more thoroughly address the consequences of tooth loss, your dentist may recommend securing your dentures to a series of dental implants, which are surgically inserted into your jawbone. Once the jawbone heals, your implants will serve as anchors for your dentures that will not only hold them securely in place but also help resolve the jawbone deterioration that causes loose dentures.
