Dentures can help solve the problems of missing teeth and can make things easier when it comes to carrying out certain basic tasks like eating and talking. You can either replace a few missing teeth in this manner or get a complete replacement, allowing you to wear and remove the denture as required.
In many cases, however, the issue of receding gums can make things difficult and is also a major cause of missing or loose teeth. While it is necessary to go about the process in a cautious manner, it is certainly possible and quite beneficial to fit dentures into receding gums.
Through this guide, you can learn more about fitting dentures to receding gums.
Causes and Consequences of Receding Gums
When the gums in your mouth that protect your teeth and hold them in place start pulling back or wearing away, this means that they are receding. There are several causes of receding gums that are responsible for infecting the gums, such as:
- Gum disease
- Age
- Hormonal changes
- Bacterial infections
- Poor dental hygiene
- Smoking
- Plaque retention
- Genetics
- HIV
- Diabetes
As a result of either of these causes, your gums are likely to get swollen and inflamed, leading to irritation, pain and trouble talking and eating. Such receding gums can also end up damaging the bones of the teeth, leading to tooth loss.
How many teeth you end up losing can actually depend on the severity of the gum disease itself. Based on this, you will need to get a treatment that can help solve the issue.
For dealing with severely receding gums, the best solution is to opt for gum grafts that your dentist might suggest. In other cases that are not as complicated, you might be able to rely on medications to help solve the issue.
However, since receding gums tend to be responsible for as much as 70% of tooth loss, getting partial or complete dentures might end up being necessary.
Getting Dentures with Receding Gums
Getting dentures with receding gums is definitely possible even without getting your gums fixed. However, it might still be better to first fix the issue of your receding gums so that the gums become strong enough to hold the dentures in place.
Since receding gums are also likely to lead to tooth loss, you will need to consult your dentist and examine the possibility of getting dentures. These will help you replace the lost teeth, either partially or in full.
The process of getting dentures involves fitting acrylic, nylon or metal teeth and plastic gums in your mouth. Several plates and clips are used to make this possible.
Benefits
There are several benefits and advantages of fitting dentures if you have experienced a loss of teeth due to your receding gums. These include the following:
- The process of replacing your teeth with dentures is quite quick and comparatively painless.
- While it might cost a bit of money, it is still much more affordable compared to other kinds of dental replacement procedures.
- Getting dentures can help you deal with the problems that the receding gums caused. You can chew your food more easily while also being able to speak clearly without slurring or experiencing pain.
- Since dentures can help hide the receding gums and the gaps arising from the lost teeth, they can improve the appearance of your teeth and help you feel more confident.
- You do not need to replace all your teeth at once if the issue is only with a couple of teeth.
Which Type of Denture Should You Get?
There are mainly two kinds of dentures that you can get depending on the extent of gum recession and the number of teeth you have lost. You can look into your options below and how they can help you out so that you can make your decision.
Partial Denture
Partial dentures involve replacing only a certain number of your teeth. For instance, if you have only lost one or two teeth due to gum recession, then you can get single tooth dentures to help make the replacement.
Your dentist, in this case, will use a plate that has a tooth fixed to it. They will then attach this to your gums using a clasp.
The issue with partial dentures, however, is the clasp itself. If you have receding gums, it is possible that this clasp will cause pain and irritation, perhaps even worsening the condition of your gums and receding them even more.
As long as you care for them properly, however, it should be fine.
Complete Denture
A complete denture might be necessary if the gum recession is quite severe and you have ended up losing or are on the verge of losing most or all of your teeth. Here, your dentist will form a new set of teeth and fit the entire set into your mouth after removing all the other teeth.
Since there are no clasps or clips involved in a complete denture, you will not need to worry about worsening the issue of gum recession, although it is still essential for you to clean up your dentures on a regular basis.
Precautions and Preparations
- Your dentist will most likely have to prepare your teeth and gums by removing or extracting the damaged teeth.
- Treatment and healing of the gums might also typically need to be carried out before your dentist can fit the partial or complete dentures in.
- Once the dentures are in, you should brush them every day in a gentle manner so that you can clean them out and remove food scraps. You should also place them in a solution so that you can get rid of the bacteria.
- You might need to use an adhesive if the gum recession is severe.
- If your dentures are damaging your gums even more, you can seek readjustments. You might even need gum grafting if this continues.
The Bottom Line
Dentures can be fitted to receding gums, although it is extremely important to carry this out in a cautious manner and to care for the dentures properly. You might also need to treat the gums beforehand in case the damage is too severe.