I am on my third set of dentures which has cost me nearly £3000, 30 visits and I still can't wear my dentures. I stick them in to go out but have to take them out to eat. This is the top set. The bottom set makes the back of my tongue go numb after wearing them for an hour. This has made really depressed. I would go for implants but my dentist said l am not suitable but old have them in my cheekbones which sounds a bit daunting. I m 70.
Dentures should last at least ten years.
As seahag mentioned, the bone that holds natural teeth will shrink. The dentures can be adjusted to compensate for this "resorption" with a reline. More of the pink acrylic resin is added to the tissue surface of the denture which makes them fit more closely to your gums.
I agree with country mouse, it sounds like you have been seeing the wrong dentist. Depending on your financial situation and how badly you want to get good dentures, could you start from square one with another dentist? Even better would be to find a Denturist. This is a professional who examines the patient, prescribes the prosthesis, and then does the fabrication. If the dentist who provided the 3 useless dentures is also the one who advised you on implants, I would get a second opinion on that as well. Our natural teeth are anchored in our "cheek" bones so that is where the implants would go too. Implants are better, if you can afford them.
Dentures replace our body parts (teeth and the surrounding bone and tissue) and they must be functional, beautiful and improve speech while causing no harm or discomfort to the patient. Dentures (and partials) must do all this while living in the mouth which is the first stage of the digestive system. Saliva is a precursor to stomach acid. Also dentures must be able to withstand the extreme force that chewing exerts on them. The muscles that draw the jaw up to the skull for chewing are some of the strongest in the body! Millimeters (and even smaller measurements) are used when getting the fit just right for just one patient. Every single denture is custom made for one and only one patient. I disagree with the opinion that replacing a body part with these very complex requirements should cost about $300 to $700! As country mouse said they are expensive but worth it. The problem in your case is that you have not gotten what you paid for.
Making your tongue go numb is EXTREMELY unacceptable. A Denturist can get a great impression of your mouth and work with you through every step of the process. I'm really sorry that you are having to deal with this physically and emotionally distressing situation with a dentist who is less than adequate.
I look at it this way if the mini implants don't last, at least I got some time with them until I go for the painful version.
I don't if you know that with implants you don't loose bone shrinkage like with regular dentures. With implants you won't get that drawn in look around your mouth. With regular dentures you start to loose bone mass and like my Mom will eventually have to have the ridge on your bottom jaw built up to hold a regular denture. I have talked to a person who has implant dentures and they love them.
Make sure you shop around because regular dentures and same for the implant version there is big price difference As I found that could thousands of dollars.
Sorry for my long version on this, but I have put a lot of research into this and hope I helped.
I think Elaine is either unlucky, or perhaps may be too fond of an old retainer (no pun intended). It also depends rather a lot on where she lives - some regions are better served than others.
I know that £3,000 is a lot of money, but if that's your third set then it sounds as if someone has been advising you to make false economies, possibly. A good denture is extremely expensive, but worth every penny - my mother's partial plate, only, cost her at least as much but that was six or seven years ago and it's still going strong. Best investment she ever made.
Depending on where you are in the country, the other thing you could do is explain to your GP what impact this is having on you - making you depressed, perhaps also preventing you from eating a good diet - and ask him to refer you either to a 'maxfax' clinic or to the Eastman, if you live within reasonable travelling distance of London.
If you're an NHS dental patient, your dentist can also refer you - it would be worth asking him to. If you're seeing him privately, it slightly complicates matters, is the problem.
I'm sure you already realise that with any new denture you do have to persevere, to some extent - use Bonjela to smooth over any sore bits, and so on. But it shouldn't be making your tongue go numb: clearly something's amiss. Don't give up! Good luck.