Seven Signs Dentures Are In Your Future

Care to hazard a guess? How many Americans wear dentures? That figure is probably significantly higher than you realize. One report by the American College of Prosthodontists states that 23,000,000 Americans are completely edentulous — meaning that they have no teeth at all. Another 12,000,000 Americans are edentulous in one jaw (upper or lower). Of those 35,000,000 Americans, some 90% of them wear dentures.

As those statistics clearly show, if you’re considering solutions for permanent tooth loss — including dentures — you’re far from alone. Dentists in Longmont hope you never need dentures, but will answer all your questions about how they can help.

How do you know that you may need dentures? Or, put another way, what are the early signs and circumstances that, if not addressed expeditiously and effectively, may render you edentulous?

Are dentures in your future?

You’ve been ignoring severe or frequent tooth pain. Severe toothaches can be a symptom of tooth decay so extensive that it is affecting the pulp or nerve inside that tooth. Failure to effectively treat that infection by root canal therapy may ultimately result in tooth loss or extraction.

Dentures in Longmont may be in your future if you tend to hide your smile out of embarrassment over the appearance of your teeth, or because you have so many missing teeth.

Failure to attend regular dental checkups twice a year may lead to the need for dentures. Those checkups are opportunities for your dentist in Longmont to identify and treat minor tooth decay and problems before it leads to more serious problems. If that tooth decay is not caught and treated quickly, it can progress to the point that extractions are required — and that dentures may be the best solution.

Bleeding, swollen, tender, and red gums may all indicate the presence of advancing or advanced gum disease — periodontitis. Before gum disease got to the stage of periodontitis, it could still be arrested by a rededication to oral hygiene habits. By the time periodontitis has become established, though, more invasive treatment such as scaling and root planing may be required. If you neglect periodontitis for too long, it will destroy so much gum tissue that your teeth will get loose and eventually fall out.

If you have lost some or all of your teeth, you’re at risk of significant oral and general health issues if that tooth loss is not addressed. While there are several possible solutions for persistent tooth loss, obtaining partial or full dentures in Longmont may be the most effective, efficient, and economical step.

Do you enjoy bagels and taffy? Or is eating chewy foods and hard foods difficult? Difficulty chewing certain chewy or hard foods can suggest that you have a potentially undiagnosed tooth fracture, periodontal disease, tooth decay or other issues that, if left untreated, may require tooth extraction or result in tooth loss.

Dentures may be in your future if your teeth seem to be shifting or loose, or if the spaces between your teeth seem to be getting larger with time. All of those things are signs that you may be suffering loss of bone matter or strength in your jaw — a symptom of advanced periodontal disease that will end with tooth loss.

Are you ready to say goodbye to loose and shifting teeth, problems eating, tooth loss, bleeding and swollen gums, and severe and frequent tooth pain? Full or partial dentures can provide an effective solution for all of those issues arising from advanced tooth decay or infection. As you consider all your options for addressing these issues, don’t assume you know everything about today’s dentures in Longmont. Contact a dentist near you to arrange for an assessment of your condition, and to get their advice about your options.