I’ve had dentures for twenty years, but in recent months they are not fitting correctly. They’re slipping out a lot and it is getting quite humiliating. My dentist said there is nothing he can do to fix it, that I’ve lost too much bone. Do you agree with him?

Drew Z. from Chicago

Drew,

Well, I do and I don’t. If you’ve been been using dentures for two decades, than you are suffering from facial collapse. Hopefully your dentist warned you about it when you had your dentures put in. When your teeth are extracted, you body begins reabsorbing the minerals in your jawbone to use elsewhere in your body. After about ten or twenty years there isn’t enough jawbone left to support your dentures.

There is, however, something you can do about it. I would look for a dentist who does bone grafting. They’ll be able to build back up your bone structure. However, if you get dentures again, you will eventually have the same problem. Another option would be to have dental implants placed. These place a root form in your jawbone, which tells your body that the bone material is still needed.

This blog is brought to you by Oklahoma City Dentist Dr. Don Swearingen.