Concern
This patient was frustrated with his teeth. He disliked their appearance, struggled with periodontal disease, and seemed to develop new cavities at nearly every visit.
Treatment
Removal of the remaining teeth with placement of interim upper and lower dentures, followed by fabrication of final complete dentures after healing.
Procedures
Extractions, interim complete dentures, final upper and lower complete dentures.
Time
Approximately 12 months wearing interim dentures before fabrication of the final dentures.
Outcome
A stable, natural-looking smile with improved comfort and function. The patient was surprised by how much he liked his dentures after never feeling confident about his teeth before.
This patient came in frustrated with his teeth. He disliked how they looked and struggled with ongoing periodontal disease and recurrent cavities. Eventually he reached the point where he wanted to discuss removing his teeth and getting dentures.
After several conversations about the realities of dentures and living without natural teeth, he decided to move forward with treatment. The remaining teeth were removed and interim upper and lower dentures were placed the same day.
He wore the interim dentures for about a year while the tissues healed and stabilized. Lower implants were recommended to improve stability and retention of the lower denture, but he chose to wait and consider that option in the future.
Once healing was complete, his final upper and lower complete dentures were fabricated. He was surprised by how much he liked the look, feel, and function of his new teeth—something he had never experienced before.
