There are many dental care procedures that Dentists use for replacing missing teeth. Dentures are one such procedure. You have three types of dentures that you can opt for:

1. partial dentures 2. Over-dentures 3. Complete dentures

Of the three, complete dentures are the most commonly used. Complete dentures are used by patients who have lost all of their teeth for one reason or another. Though nothing can replace your natural teeth in terms of quality, complete dentures are the next best option. Besides helping you chew your food, dentures prevent your facial muscles from sagging.

If you are opting for complete denture replacement, you should keep in mind that sometimes they can cause pain and discomfort. Dentures are most likely to cause discomfort in the initial stage of adjustment and after some years of use. During the initial stage your dentures will try to adjust to your gum structure and this is what causes the pain. After some time the bony ridge of your gums will shrink due to lack of stimulation. Your dentures will then become more comfortable.

Tips To Avoid Denture Discomfort

You do not always have to suffer pain, with these helpful tips you can avoid most of the problems associated with dentures:

1. Always keep your dentures clean, especially during the adjustment period. Clean dentures reduce the chance of bacterial infection which helps the healing process. Once your gums have healed your dentures will fit properly. You can clean your dentures with toothpaste, soap, or water.

2. Keep your gums clean to keep bacteria away. Brushing is a good way to provide stimulation for your gums in order to keep them healthy. Drinking green tea coats the gum and teeth with its powerful ingredients called polyphenols that fights bacteria in your mouth including your teeth and gums.

3. During the adjustment period, only eat soft foods. This will also assist with the healing process. Once the dentures have adjusted you can go back to eating what you ate before, though you should avoid chewing hard food such as apples or corn on the cob.

4. If your dentures are causing pain, you can take ibuprofen or some type of pain killer.

5. In the adjustment stage dentures tend to cause soreness. A great way of relieving gum soreness is by removing your dentures for a couple of hours everyday. If the soreness continues, visit your dentist as soon as possible.

6. Gargle or drink unflavored green tea before, during, and after meal. This is a great way of keeping bacteria at bay.

7. If you need to make adjustments, let your dentist handle it. Never do any modifications to your dentures yourself. You could harm your dentures or yourself.

8. Remember to always remove your dentures when you go off to sleep. This will provide your gums some much needed rest.

With these helpful tips you can keep pain and soreness to a minimum and enjoy your dentures.

In Japan and China, it is customary to take some green tea after every meal. This is a habit to maintain a healthy mouth. Green tea inhibits the growth of bacteria called Streptococcus Mutans in addition to other bacterial species associated with dental problems.

Yet another mechanism by which tea polyphenol reduce the risk of cavities is by increasing the resistance of the tooth to the actions of cavity-causing bacteria. Tea strengthens the bonds between fluoride and calcium, phosphorus, and organic substances in tooth enamel, resulting in a tooth surface that is highly resistant to cavity-causing acids produced by bacteria.

Improvement of facial aesthetics is no big deal today. Oral and Maxillofacial surgery has become a popular mode to remodel facial and dental structures of patients. Defects of the human jaws and associated facial structures are easily cured, thanks to the advances that have been made in dental surgery. Oral and Maxillofacial surgery, is a specialty area that plays a significant role and is a boon in improving facial aesthetics.

Teeth are an integral part of the jawbones and face. Maxillofacial surgery, a specialty of dentistry, not only aligns the bone but also the teeth, so that the functions of chewing and facial aesthetics are maintained.

The main advantage of Maxillofacial surgery is that is leaves no scars on the patient’s face. This surgery can be used to treat people with a variety of facial defects like a small chin, small upper or lower jaw; fractures of the facial bones as a result of accidents, falls or sports injuries; protruding upper and/or lower front teeth. You can even get rid of that gummy smile, which displays your teeth when you talk or smile. The surgery is also used to improve asymmetrical faces with deformities since birth or formed during development due to any reason. It can even treat jaw tumors and cysts and other diseases of the face involving the mouth and jawbones. Best of all, the results of the surgery can be seen and achieved in one day.

Maxillofacial surgery is commonly used for the extraction of teeth including impacted wisdom teeth. These could be teeth that have been injured beyond repair due to an injury, irreparable gum decay or disease or wisdom teeth that require to be removed because of malposition or impaction. Dental implants, for people who have lost their teeth, are also done by maxillofacial surgeons.

Oral and maxillofacial surgeons are specialists who have a four year background in dental education plus training of four or more years of postgraduate studies as in-hospital resident surgeons. Thus, they are uniquely placed to perform surgery on both soft tissue (skin and muscle) and hard tissue (bone and cartilage) of the maxillofacial area.