Unfortunately, human teeth are not eternal and often are subject to mechanical damage, destruction due to illness or age-related changes. Loss of teeth is a great physical and emotional trauma. After all, they have great functional significance - they participate in the process of eating food, and an aesthetic, beautiful smile is a real decoration. Dentures help correct the situation. Their use has been practiced for more than one century, and their modern forms have durability and a beautiful appearance. The main thing is to know how to care for dentures so that they serve for many years.
Removable or non-removable?
Which dentures to install, removable or non-removable, are decided after the examination and the necessary treatment by the dentist. The choice in favor of a particular type of prosthetics can be made by the patient himself, depending on his preferences. What is the difference?
Fixed prostheses are installed by surgical intervention. A metal shaft is inserted and fixed into the gum and jawbone, which replaces the root of the tooth. A new artificial tooth is attached to it. It can be made of metal, ceramic or metal ceramics. This method of prosthetics requires thorough preparation of the oral cavity before surgery, treatment of diseased teeth and removal if they can no longer be saved. No infection should get into an open wound, otherwise it will lead to serious complications and a long rehabilitation. Fixed prostheses can also include crowns and bridges. Crowns are used for partial tooth decay; bridges are used for the complete loss of two or more teeth. Extreme healthy teeth are ground beforehand to install crowns that hold artificial teeth. Mounted on a special medical cement. Professionals make both types of prostheses indistinguishable from natural teeth.
Removable dentures - what is it?
In the absence of all teeth or several in a row, removable prosthetics become the solution. They do not require surgery, they are held in the mouth with the help of special fasteners. Since these types of prosthetics are fundamentally different, the care for removable and non-removable dentures is also different.
Now the prosthesis is comfortable to wear and looks as close as possible to natural teeth. However, until now, when asking how to care for removable dentures, many people seem to have a glass of water with an “inserted jaw” inside. This, of course, is an integral part of leaving, but not everything is so scary: such a procedure does not take much time, you can not even remove the prosthesis at night. Their design has three main components: a base made of plastic, nylon or acrylic - it copies the human gums, artificial teeth and fixators that hold the prosthesis in place.
Basic care rules
How to care for removable dentures, every owner should know, because their life and beautiful appearance depend on it. Artificial teeth require no less care than natural teeth . The use of a soft brush, paste, foam for cleaning, as well as antibacterial solutions - a prerequisite for wearing a prosthesis. A normal toothbrush is used for cleaning, but always with soft bristles to prevent scratches. The paste can be the same as usual, but not whitening, it should not contain abrasive components, so as not to damage the prosthesis.
In general, removable dentures are a rather fragile design, especially if made of plastic. Therefore, they must be handled with care, to avoid mechanical damage and falls. Cleaning is best done in the morning and evening. You can use children's toothpastes - they are great for dentures due to their delicate texture. Instead of paste, a special foam is also used to clean dentures, it is convenient to use and quickly has a cleansing effect. You can buy it at the pharmacy. Sometimes liquid soap is used for cleaning, but after such a procedure, it is important to thoroughly rinse the prosthesis under running water. Mouth rinses are a good disinfectant, you should not forget about them when caring for dentures.
Flushing and fixing
It is recommended to remove the prosthesis after eating and rinse it with water each time. Indeed, there is a small gap between the gum and the prosthesis, no matter how high-quality the prostheses are. Food particles may fall into the free space. Rinsing will help to avoid damage to the prosthesis, deposits of plaque, the growth of bacteria and unpleasant odors.
Perhaps the use of means for fixing prostheses. They provide additional fastening and tight fit of the prosthesis to the gum. Such products are available in the form of powder, cream, gel, fixing strips. They prevent food from getting under the prosthesis and create greater comfort when consuming solid food, exclude the possibility of displacement of the prosthesis. And also these tools eliminate the need to remove and rinse the prosthesis during the day.
Cleaning solution
Daily prostheses are placed in a disinfectant solution for a more complete cleaning. To prepare the solution, special tablets are soluble in water. They contain acids and enzymes that protect against plaque and kill the accumulated bacteria. Such tablets may contain bleaching agents. To completely clean the prosthesis, it is enough to spend about half an hour in the solution.
Care products are offered in assortment of pharmacies; they are produced under the trademarks "Korega", President, Protefix, "Dentipur" and others. The disinfection procedure is very simple. The tablet is dissolved in a glass of warm clean water. Do not use hot water - dentures can lose shape. A prosthesis is placed in the resulting solution, it is given time to clean it for about half an hour, but not less than 15 minutes. After removing the prosthesis from the solution, it must be washed thoroughly under running water. Now you need to dry it with a napkin or a disposable towel. After cleaning, the prosthesis cannot be put on without being washed, and it is also forbidden to rinse your mouth with a disinfectant solution. On how correctly and regularly care for removable dentures at home will be carried out regularly and regularly depends on their service life and appearance.
Storage
Modern prostheses do not have a mandatory indication to remove them at night, this is the patient’s choice. But in any case, do not leave them in the open air - this will lead to deformation and the appearance of cracks due to drying out. Removable prostheses can be stored in plain clean water or put in a container with a disinfectant solution. Here are simple ways to care for your dentures at home. But if all these rules are observed, it will be useful to see the dentist once every six months. A professional will whiten a denture, remove all deposits and serious dirt from coffee or cigarettes, for example. It will also give important tips on how to care for removable dentures.
Clasp dentures
With partial absence of teeth, clasp dentures are used. Their design differs from the classical one: they are based on a metal arc on which artificial teeth are attached at the edges.
Many patients are wondering how to care for arch prostheses. The cleaning steps are identical to those for conventional prostheses. There is only one caveat: cleaning and disinfecting tablets for the preparation of a solution should contain components that protect the metal base from corrosion. And one more thing: before putting on the clasp prosthesis, you need to put in order the remaining healthy teeth, they must be thoroughly cleaned.
Ultrasonic cleaning
Dental clinics often use an ultrasonic device for cleaning and disinfection. This can be purchased for home use. It will keep the denture in perfect cleanliness, protect against bacteria and plaque, and also save on disinfectants. Such an ultrasonic bath can be bought at a pharmacy or household appliance store.
This method of cleaning is completely safe, but very effective. Ultrasonic waves penetrate all inaccessible corners and remove impurities that cannot be dealt with during mechanical cleaning. It works like this: warm water is poured into the bath, the prosthesis is immersed in it, closed with a sealed lid and the power is turned on. The procedure takes 10-15 minutes.
Reviews and Tips
After examining the patient reviews, you can understand how important the proper care of dentures is. Care products are best chosen professional, strictly intended and of good quality. Do not experiment with folk remedies. The tips of knowledgeable people can be grouped and some conclusions can be drawn on how to care for removable dentures:
- To save the budget when carrying out disinfection with a solution, you can use not a whole tablet, but a half, the effect will not be worse.
- Do not use powdered substances for cleaning prostheses, such as tooth powder and baking soda. They render the top layer unusable, creating scratches on it, and irrevocably spoil the appearance.
- When using dishwashing detergent, the surface of the prosthesis may become cloudy and lose its original shine.
- At first, wearing dentures does not need to be removed at night - this speeds up the process of getting used to new teeth.
- Do not use a solution of hydrogen peroxide or potassium permanganate to rinse your mouth, use only products specifically designed for this.
findings
The experience of patients suggests that it is worthwhile to carefully study how to properly care for removable dentures, and their further use will not bring any problems. The apparent inconvenience of wearing often makes patients doubt the choice of removable dentures. But this is just an illusion, modern prostheses do not bring problems in use, on the contrary, they improve the quality of life, and care products will always help in this.