Immediate dentures are an interim step along the way to your permanent dentures. Many patients who are interested in complete sets of permanent dentures in one or both jaws still have some natural teeth. Preparing for permanent dentures requires the removal of those natural teeth.
Your dentist in Yaletown Vancouver will extract any teeth that need to be removed to accommodate your new complete set of artificial teeth. Your new and final dentures won’t be available immediately and, even if they were, your gums and jaw need to heal fully before you’re fit for your final dentures. Dentists understand that no one wants to be entirely toothless — edentulous — during that healing process and while awaiting their final dentures if that can be avoided. Immediate dentures are how temporary toothlessness can be avoided.
How are immediate dentures prepared?
Before your dentist in Yaletown Vancouver extracts your remaining teeth to accommodate your future dentures, the dentist’s staff will take impressions of your teeth and gums. The dentist will use those impressions to make duplicates for you to wear after those teeth are extracted and while you await your final set of dentures. That way, you’ll never be completely toothless.
Your dentist’s staff and the dental laboratory technicians will make best efforts to prepare a well-fitting immediate denture, but will not be able to take impressions of your empty gums and jaw to prepare them. That means that the immediate dentures may not fit perfectly while you await your final dentures.
Any poor fit can be adjusted while your gums heal and while you await your final dentures by using temporary liners, tissue conditioners, and even by relining the emergency dentures.
Self-care after extractions to accommodate final dentures
Your dentist will provide you with detailed instructions about how to care for your extraction site(s) and gums to ensure that you recover quickly and fully in anticipation of your future permanent dentures. During your recovery process, you’ll attend occasional checkups at your dentist’s office for a couple reasons:
- To review the fit and function of your immediate dentures, and to make any necessary adjustments
- To monitor your healing process, including receding of gums and bone tissue after your teeth are extracted
Here are four tips to ensure your fullest and fastest recovery from tooth extractions necessary to accommodate your new dentures:
- Manage any pain or discomfort using over-the-counter medications
- Keep well hydrated and rinse your mouth regularly with salted water
- Follow your dentist’s instructions regarding brushing and flossing, which will vary depending on how many teeth were extracted and where
- Follow your dentist’s instruction to protect the blood clot at every extraction site to avoid a condition called dry socket. To do so, avoid the following activities during your recovery: spitting, smoking, sucking, poking and prodding, rinsing vigorously, eating chewing-intensive foods, and any strenuous physical activity.
Tooth extractions are generally accomplished without any complications but it is important to watch for any symptoms of post-extraction infection to ensure early intervention to halt that infection and to stop its spread. There are six common symptoms of such an infection. If you notice any of these symptoms after your extraction, contact a dentist near you as soon as possible for their advice:
- Increasing swelling
- Moderate or severe pain rather than mild and gradually diminishing discomfort
- Inflammation or redness at the extraction site(s)
- Persistent difficulty chewing or swallowing after recovery
- Any foul smell, taste, or discharge in your mouth
- Any fever
The transition from partial or complete edentulousness to new dentures is an exciting one. You’ll have a full and bright smile again, and will be able to speak, laugh, and eat much more naturally. The process of being fit with dentures includes several steps, including immediate dentures. If you have any questions about your fit for dentures, and the process of receiving them, contact a dentist near you whenever you’re ready for answers.