Denture Care Instructions

Denture Care INSTRUctions

Getting used to your new dentures: For the first few weeks your new dentures may feel bulky and odd. However, you will eventually become used to it. Inserting and removing the dentures will need some practice.

Denture wear: You can wear the dentures during the day, taking them out only to clean after meals. However, they must be removed before going to bed. This allows the gums to rest and promotes oral health. If you have concerns about removing your dentures, please discuss it with your dentist.

Discomfort: Sore spots may present 24 - 48hrs after initial wear. You may already have an appointment to see your dentist who will ease these areas to improve the fit. The sore spots may take up to a week to heal after that.

Eating with your new denture: Start with soft foods and gradually progress onto more solid food. You may need to cut your food into small portions and chew using both sides of your mouth to prevent denture tipping. Avoid biting with your front teeth (like biting into an apple) as this will cause tipping at the back end of the dentures.

Speaking with your new dentures: Your speech may be altered initially and pronouncing certain words will require practise. However, your speech should be back to normal within a week. To speed this process, reading out from a newspaper or magazine should help.

Excess salivation: Following use of your new dentures you may experience excess salivation for a few days.

Cleaning your dentures: Daily cleaning of your denture is necessary to prevent build-up of food debris, stains and tartar. These can cause problems with appearance, mouth odour, irritation to gums and infections.

BRUSHING

Use a soft toothbrush or denture brush to clean your denture, along with soap and warm running water (avoid hot water).

Avoid using toothpaste, abrasive pastes or smokers’ toothpaste, as this can scratch the denture, which can make it more prone to collect debris, stains and tartar.

Dentures can break, so always fill a sink/bowl with water ,then clean your dentures over the sink/bowl, just in case they slip out of your hands by accident.

Brush or rinse the denture after every meal to prevent the build-up of debris.

SOAKING

You can use denture cleaning tablets or solutions for soaking, to help loosen and remove stains and deposits. However, you should avoid leaving the dentures in the solution overnight. A 10-minute soak 1-2x a week is sufficient.

Do not soak if you have a metal denture as it can damage the metal. They can be effectively cleaned with a soft brush and warm soap water. Avoid soaking if your denture has a soft lining as some products could damage the lining. They can also be cleaned by brushing.

Care of your mouth

With partial dentures, you must take extra care of your teeth and gums. Even with full dentures, you still need to take good care of your mouth.

Brush your gums, tongue and palate with a soft brush twice a day. This helps to remove plaque and improves the general health of your mouth.

Replacing dentures

Over time dentures will need to be relined, rebased or remade due to normal wear. The dentist will use your existing denture to reline or rebase.

It may need replacing if they become loose and the teeth show signs of significant wear. Dentures become loose because the mouth naturally changes with age. Gums and the underlying bone can shrink, causing the dentures to become loose. It is important to replace worn or poorly-fitting dentures before they start causing problems.