Quote:
Originally Posted by Femlex
Hi Hopeless, I am just wondering how that works in your area. From what you wrote here and after that, it looks like the general dentist makes the denture him/herself? Where I live, the general dentist takes the impression, sends it to denture clinic (probably someone they have interest with, or contract with), they make it and send it back to the general dentist, who then fits it onto you and makes adjustments later if needed. So, where I live, the general dentist is almost like a middle man (and I guess the whole job of getting your denture is a bit more expensive). But it looks like this whole thing works differently where you live, or at least with your denture. Can you please explain the process for me?
Rude of me, should have first said that I also have a partial denture and would need to have one front tooth extracted, so am looking at my options in terms of add-on (if possible) or a new denture ... I found a place where the impressions etc. are all done at the denture clinic and the dentist is not involved at all. I read later somewhere that it is "better" to have a denture done through one's general dentist and that confused me, since the denture guy I saw for initial talk seemed to think otherwise. Could you please put more light onto this thing?
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Hi Femlex,
The general dentist that failed to provide adequate dentures was my dentist for several years and I was very satisfied with him until the denture disasters.
Bryanna has already responded and superbly explained the procedure. The dentist did the impressions and sent them off to a lab to have the dentures made. The impressions were BAD and hence, the dentures did not fit. I will leave it at that because I do not want to revisit the ordeal to even write about it. I will never get over what this guy put me through, not just financially, but emotionally, and without any wearable dentures for almost 2 years.
I no longer worry about someone seeing me "toothless" (without my dentures) since I spent almost two years in that situation. Vanity went right out of the window. Some of my friends nick named me "
Toothless" during those 2 years and would say "
Come on, Toothless, we are going to ........"
After roughly $18,000 and 3 attempts, I found someone else that could and DID provide a set of dentures that fit, a prosthodontist.
A really good general dentist might be able to provide someone with a well fitting set of dentures but that was NOT my experience. I would not wish what happened to me on my worst enemy. I have several sets of dentures that are totally useless (from the general dentist) and one set that actually fits perfectly (from my prosthodontist).
I have referred several people to my prosthodontist and they are all ecstatic with her. Two months ago, she helped a friend of mine, making dentures that would allow her to just add teeth when and as he loses any of his last 3 remaining natural teeth. She could have gone a much more expensive route and made him a new bridge when he broke a tooth and then made him a set of dentures when the remaining teeth are lost.
The extra training she has made a big difference not only for me but for all that see her for procedures that involve her dental specialty.
In my opinion, it is like deciding to have a general practitioner (PCP) take care of a heart condition or should the patient see a cardiologist? I think the cardiologist would be a better option, but that is just my opinion. When you have the need for a specialist, then you should SEE a specialist.
That is just my opinion, based on my personal experiences.