Dealing With a Broken Denture Tooth
No teeth are immune to damage, and it doesn't matter if your teeth are natural or were dentures made in a dental laboratory. A prosthetic tooth attached to a denture base simply can't decay or become infected, so it's not as though the damage can become any worse. However, a chipped or otherwise broken tooth in your dentures must still be repaired as quickly as possible.
Bite Pressure
Although they're a practical and efficient way to replace missing teeth, full dentures can't provide the same degree of bite pressure as natural teeth or dental implants. A denture tooth may have become damaged from attempting to bite something too hard for the dentures to handle. They may have also been dropped or knocked off while they were out of your mouth for cleaning or sleeping.
Arranging Repairs
However the damage occurred, a broken tooth in your dentures must be repaired as soon as possible, regardless of whether the tooth has merely chipped or has completely broken off. The tooth is prosthetic, so you don't need to worry about infection or toothache, meaning the problem may not seem especially urgent. But there's a risk with using dentures that aren't fully intact.
Potential Risks
A broken tooth is a sharp, jagged tooth, and there's a risk of cutting the soft tissues inside your mouth. The problem can be more severe when the tooth is attached to dentures, which are detachable, meaning their position can subtly shift while in your mouth. You essentially have a sharp, slightly mobile spot in your mouth, which could be an accident waiting to happen.
Repair or Replacement
If the damage to a denture tooth is minor and almost entirely superficial, then the tooth can be repaired while still attached to the denture base. However, in most cases, the damaged tooth will be removed from the denture base and replaced. If the tooth broke off entirely, bring it to the dental clinic. Provided it remained intact, reattachment is possible.
Repair Kits
Reattachment should only be performed by a dentist or denture repair clinic. Avoid using a denture home repair kit, as these cannot replicate the professional setting required for successful results. You may also damage your denture base, making reattachment difficult.
The prosthetic tooth in your dentures won't decay after being damaged, as can be the case with a natural tooth. But it's important that your dentures remain functional, safe and comfortable, and this can only happen with professional repairs.
For more information about repairing full dentures, reach out to a local clinic.
