Overdentures are dental prosthetics that are held firmly in place by dental implants. Implants are metal rods (usually titanium) that are inserted into a patient’s jawbone. Over the course of a few months, the implants fuse to the bone tissue. Once that happens, a custom-made set of overdentures literally snaps onto the implanted metal posts. The result is a set of dentures that remains firmly in place in the patient’s mouth, without the needy for messy gels. There are several benefits that overdentures offer the dental patient, including the following.
- Overdentures looks quite natural, and that helps patients to feel more self-confident and generally better about themselves. Because overdentures are so stable, the wearer can always speak clearly. The combination of the aesthetics and the ability to speak normally has a very positive impact on an individual’s self-esteem. And that can have a very positive affect on the patient’s overall health.
- One of the challenges faced by patients with no teeth is the loss of bone in the jaw due to lack of stimulation that would normally be provided by the patient’s natural teeth. Overdentures are much more stable in the patient’s mouth. That stability actually stimulates the jaw bone, which slows down resorption of bone matter after tooth loss.
- Overdentures make it easier to eat a variety of foods. With regular dentures, patients often have to stay away from certain foods because they’re just too hard to eat due to the dentures slipping. That is not a concern with overdentures since they’re secured by dental implants.
- Since overdentures don’t slip the way some regular dentures do, they allow the wearer to chew food more thoroughly, and that leads to fewer digestive issues.
- Because overdentures are anchored in place by dental implants and are remarkably stable, the wearer doesn’t need to use messy gels. This is a huge convenience for the patient.
Overdentures are, in many ways, quite similar to regular dentures. The primary difference is that overdentures snap onto the wearer’s dental implants, which means they are much more firmly anchored into the patient’s mouth. The wearer is still able to remove the dentures and care for them in much the same way as normal dentures.
Of course, overdentures might not be the best choice for everyone. Talk to your dentist to find out more information about overdentures. He or she can assess the state of your current oral health to help determine whether you’re a good candidate for these innovative dental appliances.
