New dentures wearers can experience problems. They most frequent complaint is sore spots. Although this is a common complaint of new denture wearers, this does not mean that patients need to get used to having sore spots.
When a new denture wearer notices a sore spot he should go back to their dentist and allow the dentist to examine the sore and adjust the denture and eliminate the causes of the sore(s).
There are many possible causes of denture sores including but not limited to; over extended borders, incorrect bite, pressures spots, and sharp edges. Any of these can cause a nasty sore and are often easily corrected by appropriately adjusting the denture.
Another frequent complaint some new denture wearers is that their dentures shift, especially when eating. This complaint is often caused by the denture occlusion and often can be improved by occlusal adjustments. A denture needs to be stable when the patient closes their mouth. Closing the mouth should stabilize the denture and not shift it to one side or another and if the bite is not optimum it can cause the denture to shift.
A harder problem to fix is ensuring stability of the denture during ‘excursions. When a patient is chewing food the move their mouth around in many different positions and ideally a denture occlusion should allow them to do so without destabilizing the denture and causing it to move. Often a dentist needs to adjust the occlusion a denture either at insertion or afterwards to allow a patient better chewing functions.
