Your dentures help you with everyday oral function like eating and speaking. While they’re not exactly delicate, it is possible for them to break or sustain damage. So what should you do if an accident happens and your dentures chip, crack, or snap?
Since they’re an important part of your daily routine, broken dentures are considered a dental emergency. Call your dentist, and they’ll do their best to see you as soon as possible for a solution! For more information about broken dentures, keep reading.
Can Broken Dentures Be Repaired?
In most cases, yes! Depending on the damage your dentures sustained, your dentist can make adjustments to the fit and material so that they’re good as new. If the breakage is more severe, your dentist may have to replace the denture entirely. Either way, though, you’ll be well taken care of so that you can return to normal eating and speaking.
One thing you shouldn’t do is try to repair your dentures yourself. Even a store-bought “denture repair kit” can cause more harm than good. Sit tight and wait for your dentist’s instructions, and don’t reinsert your dentures unless they give you the okay over the phone.
How Do Dentures Break?
As stated, dentures aren’t exactly delicate. However, there are a few common reasons they might become damaged. One is through unexpected happenstance, such as accidentally dropping them. Another is normal wear and tear over time – chewing food every day is a tough job, after all!
While it’s difficult to prevent accidents from happening, visiting your dentist every six months for a checkup can help monitor the extent of their wear. If your dentist notices signs of imminent breakage, they can repair or replace your prosthetic before continued strain damages them further.
Conclusion
A broken denture isn’t a danger to your oral health in the same way gum disease or infection is. However, it’s not always safe to reinsert them immediately, as small, chipped fragments could irritate your soft oral tissues. Still, you do rely on your prosthetic for everyday life, so getting them fixed promptly is in your best interest – which is why dentists considered this situation a dental emergency. Contact them in a timely manner, and they’ll walk you through the rest!
About the Author
Dr. Piro Leno is a highly experienced dentist with a special interest in cosmetics. He won a prize for his prosthodontics – which is a fancy word for dental restorations, like dentures. You can count on him to provide you with stunning, natural-looking dentures, and to help you fix and maintain them, too! To contact Dr. Leno’s office, call (781) 546-4465.