Dentures replace missing teeth with a removable plate you take out to clean. They are the least expensive way to replace several teeth at once and, for many people, a considerable relief. They also take real getting used to, and nobody tells you that part properly beforehand. This page does.
We are at 115 Christopher Columbus Drive, Suite 200, two minutes from the Grove Street PATH. Call 201-425-8600 or request an appointment.
The kinds
Partial dentures
For when you still have some of your own teeth. A plate carrying the replacement teeth clips onto the remaining ones. It can be a metal framework, which is thinner, stronger and generally more comfortable, or an acrylic one, which costs less and is easier to add to later if you lose another tooth.
Partials do have a downside worth knowing: the clasps trap plaque against the teeth they grip, so those teeth need particular attention or they decay.
Full dentures
For a whole arch. The upper one stays up by suction against the roof of the mouth, which works reasonably well. The lower one has no such advantage — it sits on a ridge with the tongue underneath it — and lower dentures are the ones people struggle with most. If you have heard someone complain their denture moves, it was almost certainly the bottom one.
Immediate dentures
Fitted the same day your teeth come out, so you never appear in public without teeth. The trade-off is that gums shrink a great deal as they heal, so an immediate denture will loosen over the following months and needs relining or remaking. Budget for that; it is part of the treatment, not a fault.
Implant-retained dentures
The answer to the loose lower denture. Two or more implants are placed and the denture clips onto them. It still comes out for cleaning, but it does not move while you eat or talk.
Costs more than a conventional denture and much less than replacing every tooth with its own implant. For people who cannot get on with a lower denture, it is often the difference between wearing it and leaving it in a drawer.
What the first few weeks are actually like
We would rather you heard this from us than found it out alone. A new denture feels large and strange. Most people go through some version of the following:
- Sore spots in the first week or two. Normal and fixable. You come back and we adjust the exact places that rub. Expect two or three adjustment visits and do not soldier on in pain — that is what those appointments are for.
- Extra saliva at first. Your mouth reads the denture as food. It settles within days.
- Speech. S and F sounds go odd for a while. Reading aloud to yourself for ten minutes a day genuinely speeds this up.
- Eating. This takes the longest. Start with soft food cut small, chew on both sides at once rather than one side, and build up over several weeks. Biting into something with your front teeth tips a denture; use the side teeth.
- Taste and temperature can feel muted with an upper denture, because the plate covers the roof of the mouth.
Most people are reasonably comfortable within a month and hardly think about it after three. Some never fully love a lower denture, which is exactly the situation implants solve.
They will need adjusting over the years
When teeth are removed, the bone that held them slowly shrinks. It is fastest in the first year and continues, slowly, for good.
The denture does not change shape, so the fit drifts. This is why a denture that was excellent five years ago now clicks or rubs, and it is not because it was badly made.
A reline, where new material is added to the fitting surface, usually restores it and is far cheaper than starting again. Expect one every few years, and a full replacement roughly every five to ten. Using more and more fixative to hold a denture that no longer fits is the wrong answer; have it relined.
Looking after them
- Clean them over a folded towel or a basin of water. They break when dropped on a hard sink.
- Brush daily with soap and a denture brush or a soft toothbrush. Not regular toothpaste — it is abrasive and scratches acrylic, and the scratches hold stain.
- Leave them out overnight and keep them in water. Gums need a rest, and sleeping in dentures raises the risk of infection.
- Never use hot water, which warps them.
- Keep seeing us even with no natural teeth. We check the fit and examine the gums, tongue and soft tissues, which is a check nobody else is doing for you.
Cost and insurance
Dentures are the cheapest way to replace a full arch. A partial costs less than a full. Metal-framework partials cost more than acrylic and are usually worth it. Implant-retained dentures cost more than both and solve a problem the others cannot.
Most PPO plans contribute to dentures, often around half, and most have a replacement clause allowing a new one only every five or so years. Relines are frequently covered separately. Watch your annual maximum, and remember any extractions needed first come out of the same pot. We check your plan and give you the figure in writing. More on the insurance and payment page. We do not take Medicaid, plans through the state, or DHMO and DMO plans.
Who does the work
Dr. Singal earned her Doctorate in Dental Surgery at the New York University College of Dentistry and handles the fitting and the follow-up adjustments herself. Those adjustment visits are where a denture is actually made comfortable, so being seen by the same person each time matters more here than almost anywhere else. More about the practice.
We see patients from across downtown Jersey City, including Grove Street, Bergen-Lafayette, Jersey City Heights and Journal Square. If a denture has broken, see emergency dental care.
How long does it take to get used to dentures?
Most people are reasonably comfortable within a month and stop thinking about it after about three. Sore spots in the first week or two are normal and are fixed by adjustment visits. Speech settles within days to weeks, and eating takes the longest to relearn.
Will people be able to tell?
Modern dentures are made to match the shape and shade of natural teeth, and a well-made one is not obvious. Teeth that are too white and too even are what gives dentures away, so we aim for something that suits your face and age rather than the whitest option.
Why does my lower denture move around?
Because it has nothing to hold it. An upper denture grips by suction against the roof of the mouth; a lower one rests on a ridge with the tongue beneath it. This is the usual complaint, and implant-retained dentures, which clip onto two or more implants, are the reliable answer.
Can I eat normally with dentures?
Eventually, with some adaptation. Start with soft food cut small and chew on both sides at once rather than one. Biting into something hard with your front teeth tips the denture forward, so use the side teeth. Most people widen their diet steadily over several weeks.
How often do dentures need replacing?
The jawbone shrinks slowly after teeth are removed, so the fit drifts even though the denture has not changed. Expect a reline every few years to restore it and a full replacement roughly every five to ten. Relying on more and more fixative instead of a reline is the wrong approach.
Should I sleep in my dentures?
No. Leave them out overnight in water. Gums need time without pressure on them, and sleeping in dentures raises the risk of fungal infection of the mouth.
How do I clean my dentures?
Brush daily with soap and a denture brush or soft toothbrush, over a towel or a basin of water in case you drop them. Avoid regular toothpaste, which is abrasive and scratches the acrylic, and never use hot water, which warps them.
Do I still need check-ups if I have no natural teeth?
Yes. We check that the denture still fits, which prevents sore spots and ulcers, and we examine the gums, tongue and other soft tissues. That examination is not being done by anyone else if you stop coming.