Dentures come in custom shapes, sizes, and fits modeled to a patient’s bite impression. If you have accurate impressions and a trusted lab with qualified technicians, your dentures should fit properly. Minor changes can occur between taking impressions and the final fitting, but they shouldn’t impact the long-term comfort of the denture. Here’s an overview of how to properly fit and adjust partial dentures:
Choose a Trusted Lab
Dentures are fabricated by licensed labs and qualified technicians who follow strict guidelines and use modern technologies and equipment.Trusted dental labs offer professional expertise and know how to interpret your patient’s impressions and molds to create fitting partial dentures. Look for labs with a positive reputation for using high-quality materials and providing reliable custom-made prosthetics and orthodontic appliances.
Take Proper Impressions
For dentures to fit properly, they must be designed according to accurate impressions of your patient’s bite. Errors in the impression can cause discomfort in your patient’s teeth, gums, or soft tissue. Indescrepincies can also affect the denture’s functionality and aesthetics, making it harder to speak or chew. Before taking impressions, assess your patient’s oral health and the condition of existing teeth, gums, tissues, and jaw structures. Use high-quality impression kits to create accurate molds that depict your patient’s dental structures. Send the mold to the dental lab and include all the necessary details they need to produce custom dentures for the patient.
Test Using Trial Dentures
Trial dentures are prototypes dental labs offer before manufacturing is finished for the final prosthetic. You can use trial dentures to test the initial fit and align them with your patient’s teeth and bite. Adjust the contacts and clasps to relieve pressure and discomfort while maintaining retention. Evaluate the patient’s ability to chew, speak, and function with the dentures in place. The denture’s framework and clasps should sit gently on the teeth. Note the changes needed and communicate this information to the dental laboratory for the final prosthetic.
Fit and Adapt for Comfort
The final dentures provide the same fit as the approved prototypes but changes can occur between the try-ins and fitting day. Advise your patient to wear the denture for a few hours a day and gradually increase the duration over time. Gradually increasing the time the denture is worn allows your patient’s gums, tissues, muscles, and tongue to adjust to the prosthetic. Schedule follow-up visits to assess comfort levels and use pressure-indicating paste to find high-pressure areas. Adjust the base, clasps, and occlusion to relieve pressure and increase stability.
Educate Your Patients
Denture fitting issues can stem from poor hygiene and care, which is why dental labs recommend patient education. Advise your patients on the right way to clean and maintain the dentures and remaining teeth. Dentures should be soaked in recommended cleaning solutions at night. Discourage self-adjustments and any attempts to use adhesives, dental wax, and temporary filling. Such attempts can interfere with the denture’s structure and result in more discomfort. Recommend scheduling appointments for all concerns, including discomfort and loose or broken dentures.
Provide Ongoing Care
As your patient’s oral structure adapts to the denture, the fit may change, calling for periodic relining and rebasing. Maintain open communication with your patient to address complaints and concerns as soon as they emerge. Schedule in-office appointments to assess the fit and check for wear on the denture, teeth, and soft tissues. Ongoing care allows you to make necessary changes that help to maintain comfortable, functional, and properly fitting dentures.
Order Custom-made Partial Dentures Today
Dentures provide a solution for missing teeth and make up a significant percentage of dental prosthetics patients request. You can partner with a dental laboratory to help you fabricate custom dentures for your patients. Contact a dental lab today to find out more about partial dentures.