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Damaged Dentures: the dangers of DIY repair

Precision, complete, and partial dentures all need to be handled with care.
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Precision, complete, and partial dentures all need to be handled with care. Denture gums are made from acrylic, a delicate plastic, and the teeth themselves are either made out of acrylic or porcelain, both of which are liable to shatter if dropped onto a hard surface.

When dentures need repairing, the best option is always to see a qualified denturist. Those who try to fix their dentures themselves usually end up making the situation considerably worse.

“The public perception is that you can just glue your dentures back together,” says Kerrisdale Denture Clinic denturist Giao Le. “But that’s completely false. You should never, ever, use superglue on dentures. First off, superglue is poisonous. If it is on your dentures, it will get into your body. And secondly, if you use superglue, the dentures become irreparable. Your denturist will not be able to fix them.”

Cracks are repaired with acrylic, Le explains, and if the crack is already filled with superglue, the acrylic will not meld with the denture.

Unrepaired or improperly repaired fissures and cracks on broken dentures leave room for harmful bacteria to grow. And nobody wants that in their mouth.

“Repairing dentures for our patients is a particularly straightforward process,” says Giao, “because we know the patient and the dentures already. If the dentures were made elsewhere, it takes a little longer but the end result is still the same. The difference is that the owner of the dentures needs to be present.”

Denture can be repaired while you wait in modern facilities such as Kerrisdale Denture Clinic. The process only takes between 45 and 90 minutes, assuming the dentures are repairable.

“One of the few limitations to repairs is the age of the denture,” says Giao. “At a certain point, old dentures just cannot be fixed. The materials have simply been worn down too much.”

Denture repair products are available for consumers, but that leaves room for error. What’s in the product? Will your repair job prevent the growth of bacteria in the break? In the end, dentures are far too expensive to trust to a $5 repair kit.

So next time your dentures are in need of repair, see a professional. And rest assured that your dentures are in good hands.

To find out more about safe denture repair, visit Kerrisdale Denture Clinic’s website,send them an email, call 604-263-7478, or drop by their location at 2152 West 41st Avenue.