Tooth Implant Procedure - in Your Local Area

Dental Health and Caring for Seniors

Seniors are the fastest-growing age group in the U.S., in part because medical advances and preventive care are extending life and the quality of it. As the baby boomer generation ages, the senior population is swelling, along with their interest in maintaining healthy bodies and lifestyles. Good dental health is important to overall health and seniors must stay on top of their dental care. It is now possible to keep natural teeth and good dental hygiene plays a vital role.

Dental Decay and Gum Disease

Talk to your dentist about the proper care of your teeth and dental health. Brushing twice a day and flossing regularly are the most important steps you can take to keep your teeth and gums healthy. If age is causing your gums to recede, clean your teeth thoroughly, but be careful not to irritate or tear the gums. A receding gum line may also expose sensitive portions of teeth; careful brushing is important, as are toothpastes that offer sensitivity protection. If you have difficulty using a toothbrush or floss because arthritis or a stroke has impaired your agility, ask your dentist to recommend commercial products that will make the tasks easier. Bleeding or sensitive gums, constant bad breath, receding gums, and loose teeth are all symptoms of gum disease, which can hasten tooth loss. If you spot these symptoms, talk with your dentist about them before they cause pain and deterioration.

Watch Your Mouth!

After a lifetime of chewing and biting, many seniors have dentures, bridges, crowns, and, of course, their fair share of fillings. Over time, even the best dental hardware can wear out. If you feel changes in your mouth, particularly when you are eating, brushing, or flossing, bring them to your dentist's attention. You may take medications or have a medical condition that results in dry mouth. Saliva production is important to good dental health: it keeps the mouth moist, washes away food particles, and protects against decay from plaque. Enlist the help of your dentist, and ask about artificial saliva products.

Maintaining Your Investment In Dentistry

Don't stop caring for your teeth and mouth at this stage of the game! Keeping your teeth healthy means greater comfort and enjoyment as you eat, laugh, and speak. Good preventive care will give you something to really smile about and help to maintain your dental health!

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.

Metal Based Denture vs Plastic - Which is Best for You?

A metal-based denture is one in which a portion of the denture body is made of a substantial metal casting rather than all plastic (acrylic resin). This procedure is usually done on the lower denture.

There are two types of metal-based dentures.

Standard metal-based denture

The metal base portion of the denture is in direct contact with underlying supporting tissues.

The base is fabricated from a special medical grade alloy that is hypoallergenic and very biocompatible with tissues. Generally, tissues in contact with this type of material are very healthy in appearance.

Modified metal-based denture

The metal base portion of the denture is not in direct contact with underlying supporting tissues. A soft or hard plastic liner may be interposed between the metal and supporting tissues.

A soft liner is generally preferred to hard plastic since it is more comfortable to wear; however, the soft liner usually should be replaced on an annual basis.

The Rationale for a Metal-Based Denture

Facilitates the avoidance of disruptive forces

Sometimes it is necessary to construct a very narrow denture in order to avoid any structures that would loosen the prosthesis, such as muscles flexing, and so forth. In addition, necessary surgical procedures to reposition a muscle attachment (called a frenum) can sometimes be avoided with these narrow type dentures.

However, such narrow dentures are weak and tend to break quite easily when fabricated just from plastic. A metal base provides the needed strength to design a very narrow denture in order to follow the confines of a patient's lower resorbed alveolar ridge (the remaining bony ridge). In addition, the metal base provides long-term dimensional stability and strength that is not enjoyed with an all-plastic denture base.

Provides a more natural feeling

The added weight of the metal base provides a more natural perception for many patients. Many patients prefer the additional weight on the lower jaw.

A private study measured the actual weight of cadaver jaw ridges and teeth that would normally be lost after the extraction of teeth and associated natural shrinkage of the jawbones. It was found that the weight of these tissues closely approximated the weight of a metal base. Therefore, it is likely that the more natural feeling perceived by persons wearing metal-based dentures is probably real rather than imagined.

The additional weight of a metal base also contributes to lower denture stability by causing the denture to settle down onto a jaw ridge.

Advantages of Metal-Based Dentures

• Very biocompatible and hypoallergenic with healthy-appearing supporting tissues
• May include a soft liner
• Can be relined easily
• Provides added strength for easily broken narrow dentures
• Facilitates fabrication of stable narrow-based dentures that are designed to avoid contact with disrupting muscle forces
• Sometimes facilitates the avoidance of surgical procedures to reposition frenum
• Patients perceive a more natural feeling from the added weight
• Weight may contribute to additional denture stability
• Dimensionally very stable when compared to all-plastic-based dentures during fabrication and over time

Disadvantages of Metal-Based Dentures

• Generally difficult to reline standard metal-based dentures; modified metal-based dentures (described earlier above) are easier to reline
• More costly to fabricate

by Joseph J. Massad, D.D.S.

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.