Lets explore why all dentures are not created equal. In the most simplistic sense all dentures are made from pink acrylic for the gum and white denture teeth. If that’s the case, then where are the differences????To examine this we can draw from examples in everyday life. Lets look at houses, for example.If all houses are made of nails, glass and wood then why do they differ? The answer is that to build a house there are many other factors other than the basic raw materials that go into building that house. For example:
1)Does the house have high end custom exterior appearance?
2)Is the house built on stable ground?
3) Does the house have a solid foundation?
4)what is the quality of wood being used?
5) Are the wood pieces securely fastened together well?
6) Is the house engineered in the best possible way so that it wont collapse?
Another issue is, are the steps in building a house checked carefully before proceeding to the next step.If a house needed to be built in a week, there may not be enough time to thoroughly check each step and/or certain steps might need to be skipped to accelerate the process to reach a hasty deadline The same is true for dentures. Below is a side by side list of steps involved in making an ideal denture vs one that is made cheaply or quickly(sometimes even in one day). Notice how many steps would need to be skipped when a denture is made quickly/cheaply and also the additional detail that is taken with a custom denture.
STEP | Custom Denture | Stock Denture | Explanation of Step |
Final impression | x | x | The ideal denture process uses a 2 visit impression process that allows for greater detail and therefor a better fit. This involves custom molding wax so that it accurately captures the personal
contours of your mouth. |
Establish Facial reference points | x | The midline of the face is determined. Proper width of teeth is determined using
other facial features. Height of teeth is determined by evaluating lip movements during smiling.. |
|
Jaw /BiteRegistration | x | The upper and lower models are mounted on an intricate articulator machine that accurately simulates the patients exact jaw movements. A stable
bite is critical for a denture. If not, the denture will easily tip and loosen. |
|
Tooth selection | x | x | Premium Quality teeth are used in a custom denture. All denture teeth are not the same. High quality teeth look much more real and life like than a stock denture.
Premium teeth are also much more wear and stain resistant than stock dentures. |
Try in visit | x | In a custom denture , one or more visits are spent trying the teeth in BEFORE finishing to optimize the esthetics. Stock dentures have no tryin visits. | |
Final Bite adjustments | X | The final denture is mounted on the special jaw simulator articulator and final bite adjustments are made to dial in the exact bite. | |
Step | Stock Denture | Custom Denture | Explanation of Step |
Tooth selection | NO | X | Premium Quality teeth are used in a custom denture. All denture teeth are not the same. High quality teeth look much more real and life like than a stock denture.
Premium teeth are also much more wear and stain resistant than stock dentures. |
Try in visit | NO | X | In a custom denture , one or more visits are spent trying the teeth in BEFORE finishing to optimize the esthetics. Stock dentures have no tryin visits. |
Final Bite Adjustment | NO | x | The final denture is mounted on the special jaw simulator articulator and final bite adjustments are made to dial in the exact bite. |
Final Impressions | NO | x | The ideal denture process uses a 2 visit impression process that allows for greater detail and therefor a better fit. This involves custom molding wax so that it accurately captures the personal
Contours of your mouth |
Establish Facial
Reference points |
NO | x | The midline of the face is determined. Proper width of teeth is determined using other facial features. Height of teeth is determined by evaluating lip movements during smiling.. |
Jaw/Bite Registration | NO | x | The upper and lower models are mounted on an intricate articulator machine that accurately simulates the patients exact jaw movements. A stable
bite is critical for a denture. If not, the denture will easily tip and loosen. |