Dentures: Importance of Annual Recare Appointments

Once you’ve got your dentures in place, you’re good to go, right?

Well, not so fast.

Much like you go to the dentist for regular visits, it’s always a good idea to return to your Ottawa denture clinic to see your denturist and denture care team for annual recare appointments.

In this edition of the Ottawa South Denture Clinic blog, we’ll discuss why annual recare appointments for dentures are important and what you can do to promote good oral health and denture condition.

Denture Wear & Condition is an Ongoing Matter

You take your car into the shop for servicing on a regular basis.

You visit your general practitioner or family physician for an annual checkup.

And you see your dentist for cleanings and dental checkups.

So why would the same not apply for your denture clinic?

After all, although dentures are built to last and withhold the day-to-day functions such as chewing, speaking and more, wearing dentures is an ongoing feature, one that evolves over time.

Dentures can also present challenges or issues during the normal course of denture wear. This includes things like:

Cracks, scratches or chips in the dentures
Dulling and/or changes in denture appearance
Shifts in the denture stability
Changes in the denture bite, oral tissue, jawbone and more

Changes can also occur in your dental and oral health aside from your dentures.

Moreover, many patients have changes in their overall physical health over time.

It is for these reasons that we would like to see you at our Ottawa denture clinic once a year. (We’re happy to see you anyway, it’s always nice to catch up!)

What Takes Place at Your Annual Denture Recare Appointment

When you first get your permanent dentures (complete dentures or partial dentures) at the Ottawa South Denture Clinic, you’ll return to the denture clinic for a follow-up appointment within a few days after the denture delivery. At this time, we would like to schedule your annual denture recare appointment for one year later.

Now, should any issues occur with your dentures along the way, we encourage you to book an appointment to adjust or repair the dentures as needed.

Otherwise we’ll see you in a year’s time. What happens at your annual denture clinic visit?

The first thing we check when you return to our Ottawa denture clinic is your oral health and overall physical health, asking to see whether there have been any significant changes. Then we perform oral cancer screening, it’s always good to be extra safe.

We’ll also discuss any concerns you may have about the dentures, such as denture bite, denture appearance or other matters (though the more urgent denture issues, we ask that you come into the denture clinic sooner, rather than waiting for the annual denture recare visit).

At the yearly denture recare appointment we’ll look to maintain (or restore/improve) the fit of your dentures, check the appearance of the dentures and look at the overall role your dentures are playing in your oral health and things like chewing, speaking and other use.

Doing this for your dentures also helps keep the denture warranty intact.