Dentistry is the known evaluation, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases, disorders and conditions of the soft and hard tissues of the jaw (mandible), the oral cavity, maxillofacial area and the adjacent.
An Interview with Dr. David Leader on Dentures
Dr. David Leader is a dentist and has answered some of the common questions Bizymoms visitors have about Dentures.
Q. What are dentures?
A. Dentures are a removable substitute for teeth and gums. Full dentures are made of plastic. Partial dentures are usually a combination of plastic and metal. Dentures are not teeth. They are as much like teeth as a prosthetic arm is like a real arm. However, they are also like a musical instrument. Hand someone their first flute, and they may be able to force out a note on their first try. After some practice, their efforts will make them and everyone around them smile.
Q. Why should I use a denture adhesive?
A. Most dentures are not firmly attached to the gums. Patients may have trouble learning to hold their dentures in place. Denture adhesive helps to keep dentures stable. Adhesive can keep food from becoming trapped under the denture.
Q. What types of cosmetic dentures are possible?
A. All dentures are cosmetic. Dentures not only replace teeth and support lips and cheeks. Dentists should work closely with their patients to make sure that the denture teeth and gums are the right color. Denture teeth come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. Patients may wish to reproduce their youthful smile in all of its realistic gaps and flaws. Others may want a perfect smile that glistens with Hollywood white teeth. Dentures, a visionary dentist and an artful dental lab technician can make almost anything possible.
Q. How long do cosmetic dentures take to make?
A. All dentists and dental offices have their own system for making the perfect denture. At Leader Dental Associates, dentures may be ready in only a couple of weeks. Sometimes, a denture case is more complicated, or the doctor and patient become more demanding of the lab technician. Complicated cases will take more time.
Q. What are the alternatives to cosmetic dentures?
A. Some patients who do not have teeth do not want to wear removable dentures. Their best option is to replace all of their teeth with implant supported bridges. This is a process that may take months and will cost several times the cost of removable cosmetic dentures.
Q. Are dentures uncomfortable or painful to wear?
A. Most patients are comfortable wearing their removable dentures. Patients who are not comfortable should return to their dentist for adjustments, repairs or relines. Dentists can line dentures with soft material for especially sensitive patients.
Q. What’s the difference between conventional dentures and immediate dentures?
A. I prefer the term interim dentures over immediate dentures. Interim dentures are temporary dentures that patients may use as soon as the surgeon or general dentist removes their teeth. Interim dentures allow patients to smile immediately and to eat soon after surgery. Interim dentures will become loose in days or weeks as the gums heal and shrink.
Dentists make conventional dentures after the teeth have been missing for at least a few months. Conventional dentures will fit better and last longer. If there is anything that the patient (or a significant other) does not like about the interim denture, the dentist and dental lab will make adjustments in the conventional dentures.
Q. How to contact Dr. Leader if we have further questions?
A. I have been mastering the Leader Dental Associates website for about ten years. At www.TheMaldenDentist.com, current and prospective patients can find contact information and directions to the office. Anyone is welcome to contact me with questions by email at david.leader@tufts.edu, or through my Twitter account, http://twitter.com/Leaderdmd. The office is at 389 Main St unit 403, Malden, Ma 02148, and our phone is (781) 397-9229.
