When teeth and surrounding tissues are damaged or completely lost for various reasons, the materials used to repair or replace them are called prosthetics.
Prosthetics aim to restore the patient’s lost functions, while also improving speech and aesthetic appearance. This allows for the restoration of significantly lost oral health and provides psychological support to individuals in society who are forced to live with missing or damaged teeth. This is because individuals forced to live their lives (even temporarily) in this way often forget to smile.
This situation causes both functional impairments and a loss of self-confidence. Various prosthetics designed for such patients aim to improve their quality of life.
Teeth wear down to varying degrees over the years due to eating, chewing, swallowing, and grinding their teeth at night. Furthermore, portions of the teeth can break due to decay and accidents. In such cases, the lost tooth structures are replaced with prosthetics called crowns.
These veneers were once made using porcelain, acrylic, or metal alloys specifically produced for dentistry. Today, with recent advancements in dentistry, extremely natural appearances can be achieved, especially with porcelain (Low 151 porcelain, Empress, In-Ceram, Procera, Zirconium).
There are generally two types of dentures made after tooth loss:
- REMOVABLE DENTURES, which can be attached and removed at the patient’s discretion.
The term “removable denture” generally refers to the patient being able to attach and remove dentures that replace missing teeth. This type of denture requires support from the surrounding soft tissues, as well as the remaining teeth. The denture sinks slightly into the soft tissues of the mouth due to the load placed on it during chewing, meaning it moves.
A removable denture is used when one or more teeth are missing.
A complete denture is used when all of the natural teeth are missing.
A removable partial denture is used when all of the natural teeth are missing. To restore a large filling when there is insufficient dental support.
To prevent weak teeth from breaking.
As a superstructure for a dental implant.
To cover broken, deformed, or discolored teeth.
Bridge: In cases where one or more teeth are missing, the adjacent teeth are reduced in size, filled in the gaps, and supported with crowns.