Complete Denture Care

Due to the fact that our dentists take a jaw impression before any extractions occur, your dentures will look like your old teeth. If you’re not satisfied with the status, color or form of your original teeth, then it’s possible to discuss this with our dentists. They’ll take this into account as much as possible when developing your dentures.

For a mouth prosthesis, it’s not always necessary to extract all teeth. If you still have lots of healthy teeth, you can opt for a combined prosthesis.  With a complete prosthesis, over the lower and upper jaw, all remaining teeth need to be extracted. The Dentist extracts first the molars and then some weeks later the remaining teeth. During this period, you should only eat soft and liquidized food. The extraction of the teeth and molars is usually painless due to it being carried out under local anaesthetic.

During the first week, you’ll have to get used to your new dentures. The first few days wearing them can feel somewhat painful. The space between your jaw and the dentures is initially quite small. If this results in painful pressure points then we’ll make sure that this will be corrected. To do so simply contact one of our practices in Amsterdam for an appointment.

Lassus Tandartsen advises clients to make as much use as possible of the dentures. This way possible painful areas can be detected as soon as possible and corrected. As dentures are carefully and exactly developed to match the shape of your mouth, it’s important that you don’t make any changes to them yourself.

During the first days after the placing of the dentures speaking may feel somewhat uncomfortable. This is because your jaws have to adjust to the form of the dentures. After a week you should notice that speaking and articulation steadily improves. After some time you’ll be completely used to your new teeth and speaking and eating will no longer be a problem at all.

The most common reason for dentures no longer fitting properly is a process called bone resorption, where the gums begin to shrink due to them no longer needing to hold your teeth in place. As your dentures can’t shrink in line with your gums, this can lead to them becoming loose. That can become painful as in certain places more pressure is applied than before. The specialists at Lassus Tandartsen can, in this case, fit a special layer that will ensure that the dentures sit comfortably again and are no longer loose.

Dentures are extremely vulnerable objects. Teeth can break off and it’s also possible that your dentures can break or rip. Therefore, we advise you to always be very careful with your dentures, particularly during the cleaning process. Leave for example a hand towel in the wash basin, or run a small layer of water before you begin cleaning. This way you can avoid damaging your dentures if they accidentally fall into the wash basin.

Your dentures are not immune to bacteria, plaque, and stains. For that reason, you should rinse your mouth out well and clean your dentures with a hard brush, after every meal as well as after coffee, tea, cigarettes, and wine. Avoid the use of aggressive cleaning products such as toothpaste, bleach, and effervescent tablets, these can be damaging for your dentures. In addition to this, we strongly advise you not to use warm or hot water to clean your dentures. It is possible to use soap or a special liquefied cleaning material for your dentures. At night you should remove your dentures and place them in a container of cold water. For good results, you can use cleaning vinegar. Use a soft bristled brush to clean your jaws, tongue, and mouth. This can prevent infections. For this, you can use lukewarm water or toothpaste.