Sore spots and movement
Show us where it rubs, lifts, clicks or presses. A sore spot can often be eased at the same visit.
Loose or sore dentures
Unhappy With Your Dentures?
‘I’ll just have the soup.’ When that’s become your answer at every dinner out, because the denture rubs or clicks, the fit has probably shifted. We’ll check your gums, your bite and the denture itself. Often an adjustment is all it needs.
Fit and comfortAdjustmentsA new dentureImplant support
Start with when
When does it let you down?
A denture that rubs only at dinner points somewhere different from one that lifts when you talk. We’ll ask when it started, what you’ve stopped eating, and whether it’s been adjusted or repaired before.
Your gums, jaw and bite
The gums and bone under a denture slowly change shape over the years, and so does the way your top and bottom teeth meet.
Eating and talking
The foods you’ve quietly given up, words that come out differently, and the moments you don’t trust it to stay put.
How you look after it
How you clean it, and whether you sleep in it.
What we can do
Adjust it, or start again?
Plenty of problems ease with an adjustment to the denture you already have. Others need a new one, which takes several weeks to make in a lab.
Why fit changes
It used to fit. What changed?
Your gums and the bone under them slowly shrink after teeth are lost, but the denture stays exactly the same. The space that opens up between them is behind a lot of rubbing and rocking, so we look at both.
One sore spot usually needs a small adjustment, sometimes on the day. If the whole fit has changed, or the denture no longer meets your bite, a new one is the more useful fix. It’s acrylic, or a partial on a metal framework. Implants that hold a denture mean surgery and healing time, so we’d weigh that against adjusting or replacing what you have.
Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding, you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.
Your denture check
Bring the denture in, broken or not
Wear it to the appointment if you can, so we can see how it sits and moves when you talk. If it hurts too much to wear, bring it in a container.
Where it bothers you
Where it rubs or rocks, and anything you’ve tried at home to keep it in place, like fixative or cushions.
Your mouth first, then the denture
We look at your gums, jaw, bite and any teeth you still have, then at how the denture fits and how worn it is.
What could fix it
Adjusting it, replacing it, or implants to hold it steady, and what each would involve for you.
The cost before any work
An adjustment can sometimes happen on the spot. Anything bigger gets a clear order of visits and a price before we begin.
Old denture or new?
Is it the denture, or is it me?
A ten-year-old denture can still fit well, and a brand-new one can rub. What decides it is where the problem comes from, so we find that before we suggest anything.
Book a denture appointmentWhat we check before suggesting anything
- Where it rubs, moves, clicks or presses
- Changes in your gums, jaw shape and bite
- How old the denture is, its condition and any past changes
- How you clean it, wear it and use it day to day
- Whether you’d like to compare removable and implant-held options
We’ll tell you what can be adjusted today and what would need a new denture, so you know which decision is actually in front of you.
If you’re thinking bigger
Done with removable teeth altogether?
Sometimes a fit problem turns into a bigger question about replacing teeth another way. Here are the fixed options, and what to expect at a first visit.
You might also want to read
Dental implants
How implants can hold a denture steady, and what the surgery involves.Read this pageYou might also want to read
Dental bridges
A fixed option held by your own teeth, if enough remain.Read this pageYou might also want to read
New-patient expectations
What happens at a first visit, from the forms to what we find.Read this pageQuestions about fit
When your denture doesn’t feel right
Loose fit, cracks, how long a new one takes, speech, implants, and how to tell when an adjustment will do.
Because your mouth keeps changing and the denture doesn’t, and the denture teeth wear down over time too. A sore spot, a cracked base or a high point in the bite can also make it rock, and looking at the denture alone won’t tell you which.
Book a check and notice exactly when it moves: eating, talking, yawning or sitting still. We examine your mouth and the denture together, then say whether an adjustment will do or a new one makes more sense.
Stop wearing it if the broken edge is sharp or digs in, and don’t glue it at home. We’ll check what’s broken, the state of the rest of the denture and how it fits, then say whether it can be fixed or needs replacing.
When you ring, we’ll ask what’s broken and whether you can still wear it, so we book enough time. Bring the pieces in a container. You’ll have the cost of fixing or replacing it before you agree to either.
Several weeks, because it’s made in a lab. Along the way there are visits to take impressions and check the fit and bite before it’s finished.
Once you’ve worn it for a while, come back if it rubs anywhere, and we’ll adjust it.
Yes, especially once it moves, rubs or no longer meets the opposite teeth properly. Some foods get harder to chew, and sounds like s and f can come out differently. The cause could be the fit, sore gums, a worn denture or your bite, which is why we ask exactly when it happens.
We’ll ask for a few examples: foods you now cut small or avoid, words that trip you up, the times it lifts. That keeps the check on the real problem, and nobody assumes you need a new denture from the start.
For some people, yes. Implants placed in the jaw can hold a denture steady, but they don’t suit every mouth. We check your gums, the bone, your bite, your general health and which teeth remain. It involves surgery, and the implants take 3–6 months to fuse with the bone. Like any surgery it carries risks, and we’d encourage a second opinion.
We’ll compare that with adjusting or replacing your denture for stability, cleaning, timing and cost. Nobody decides on surgery at a first appointment.
A single rough edge, a pressure point or a small fit problem is usually fixed with an adjustment. A worn or damaged denture, or one that no longer matches the shape of your mouth and bite, is usually better replaced. Its age alone doesn’t decide it.
We look at the denture and your mouth side by side and explain what each option involves. You’ll have the cost, upkeep and timing of both before you choose between a quick fix and starting again.
