Getting dentures is unique to an individual. How long the process takes is determined by the kind of dentures you want and the overall health of your mouth. Most people opt for fully removable immediate dentures custom made and positioned in your mouth. The procedure can take a few weeks after the extraction of the remaining teeth. Remember the jaw has to heal first.
The process starts with preliminary impressions and centric tray recording. Here, the dentist will decide the length of new teeth based on the patient’s mouth. The denture has to be an ideal fit, and this is achieved by making sure there is correct alignment between the upper and lower teeth. The denture making process starts here where the lower alginate impression is taken. Next, the bite record is taken with the centric tray.
The next step takes place in the laboratory where pouring impressions and mounting will take place. The preliminary models are mounted with the centric bite record previously made by the centric tray. In the lab, custom impressions trays are built with the help of a gnathometer.
After this, the dentists go back to the patient where they now have to take the final impressions and gnathometer record. Last impressions are taken with custom trays made in the laboratory. The gnathometer is used to record the bite. Using the gnathometer, specific jaw movements are marked on top of the molds made in the laboratory. The gnathometer is coloured and an arrow introduced on a particular coloured area where the bite is recorded with bite registration material.
These new readings are now taken to the lab where the fresh bite and models are now mounted to the articulator. New stone models are poured in the final impressions before mounting. With these in place, the teeth can now be set on the wax one by one based on the colour shade and size of the teeth picked by the patient. After this, the wax try-in is the next step where the teeth are now fitted on the patient and adjustments made if necessary. If everything is okay and all the measurements are accurate, the dentures are now taken back to the lab for the final wax-up process.
The wax denture is invested in stone and melted away. It is then replaced by injecting acrylic into the space. After this, finishing is done on the dentures which involves removing the clutters and any spots that can cause sore spots on the gum. The dentures are then polished, and the new smile is ready for delivery to the client.