Dentures in Windham ME

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Get the Functional, Whole Smile You Deserve in Windham ME

Tooth loss affects over 170 million Americans of all ages, impacting their ability to eat, speak, and smile with confidence. While gaps in your smile can wreak havoc on your self-esteem, missing teeth can also lead to an increased risk of other oral health concerns, including more tooth loss. Our team at Roosevelt Dental offers beautiful, customized full and partial dentures in Windham to fill the gaps in your smile and restore its function and beauty. Call us today to schedule a consultation!

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Who is a Good Candidate for Dentures?

Dentures are incredibly versatile and can be specially designed based on what type of tooth loss you face. Whether you opt for full, partial, or implant dentures, these prosthetics are excellent for patients who are missing several or all of their teeth across an arch.

The best way to learn whether you qualify for this treatment is to visit Dr. Jenny Miedema for a one-on-one consultation. After thoroughly examining your mouth and speaking with you about your goals, she will be able to outline a treatment plan to help rebuild your smile.

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Types of Dentures

Depending on the location of your missing teeth in Windham, your jawbone density and oral anatomy, your smile goals, and your budget, our team at Roosevelt Dental may recommend any of the following types of dentures for you.

Partial Dentures:
Partial dentures are removable and made to fit like a puzzle piece between your existing teeth. They’re ideal for patients who are missing several teeth throughout a row, acting to fill in the spaces by anchoring replacement teeth to a metal or acrylic clasp that effortlessly slides between your existing teeth.

Full Dentures:
Full dentures are recommended for patients who have an entire row of missing teeth. They’re comprised of two main parts, the base, which is gum-colored and made from acrylic, and the replacement teeth, which can be crafted from natural-looking dental materials like porcelain. They’re specially designed to utilize suction within the mouth to stay in place atop the gumline.

Implant Dentures:
Implant dentures offer the best in aesthetics and function, as they’re the only tooth replacement solution that replaces the entire structure of missing teeth, including the roots. Instead of resting atop the gumline, your denture will be attached to anywhere from four to eight titanium posts that have been surgically placed below the gumline. This additional component allows for greater stability, support, and a lifelike feel.

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The Benefits of Dentures

Dentures offer a variety of benefits that make them a popular choice among patients looking to restore a number of missing teeth. Some of the advantages of this treatment include:

• Each restoration is customized to look like a natural part of your smile.
• Ability to last for up to 10 years.
• Cost-effective solution for tooth loss.
• Easy to clean and removable.
• Preservation of facial shape.
• Allows better chewing and speaking abilities.

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How Will My Mouth Feel With Dentures in Windham ME

As with anything we use on a regular basis such as spectacles or braces, there will be an adjustment period with dentures where they will feel strange and foreign. You may feel like you have a “full mouth.” There may be a hyperawareness of your lips being pushed forward; you may even feel like your teeth are too big and taking up too much space in your mouth. Your mouth, sensing that there is something inside, will likely mistake this to mean there is food present, and you may salivate more at first.

These feelings will eventually subside after about 14 days as your mouth adjusts to the new dentures. During this initial adjustment period, you may be advised to wear the dentures all the time, only taking them out for cleaning. Once the adjustment period is over, your dentist will consult with you on an appropriate time to remove your dentures for long periods of time to give your gums a rest. Normally this would be at night when it’s time to sleep.

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Will Dentures Affect My Speech

If you’ve ever had the experience of wearing braces, then you know there was also an adjustment period where your speech patterns were affected. So, the answer here is “yes, at first.” The most likely phonetics to be affected at first will be “S,” “Sh,” “Th” and “Ch” sounds. This is because your tongue is now in a slightly different position from what you are used to. There may also be a new whistling or hissing sound that accompanies your speech.

Regular speaking will eventually retrain you to regain proper pronunciation of words. However, if you’d like to speed up this process, then either read out loud to yourself for a few days or be aggressive about a conversation in the initial days after you receive your dentures. You will eventually adjust to the differences, compensate, and speak normally.

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How Will Dentures Affect Eating

In most cases, dentures will ultimately not affect your eating habits, but some retraining will be required. Some people adjust to eating with dentures after a few weeks. Others may take up to six months to feel comfortable. However, any food that requires hard biting down with the front teeth, such as corn on the cob, or an apple may always present some challenges.

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As with any new addition to your daily living habits, practice will eventually lead to comfort and mastery of your new dentures. But if you have any specific questions or concerns about their use and care, you should always refer them to your dentist and get some reliable, professional advice. Contact our team at Roosevelt Dental today for more information.