Price for Dentures

203846930

Dad has very few of his own teeth left, they are mixed in with a couple of bridges and some crowns as well as one back tooth that has been root filled but just has the shell of a tooth left having been filled.

Can anyone give a rough idea what it would cost to get full dentures fitted.
He is an NHS patient.

brook2jack

It depends on what part of the U.K. he is in, whether he is in receipt of benefits and whether he wears dentures now.

If he has dentures already and the dentist thinks it is a good idea to remove the rest of his his teeth thus may be done in stages , to allow the gum and bone to heal , and teeth added to his denture each time.

Eventually , after healing , a new set of dentures will be made. This may need replacing itself depending on how much bone shrinkage there is. There will be charges for each stage.

If he has no existing dentures then some teeth may be taken out , if the dentist thinks it a good idea, and bone and gum left to heal. Then a provisional set of dentures may be made and the rest of the teeth removed . As the gum and bone heals up a new set of dentures will need to be made. Again charges will be made for each stage.

In general it is much better to try to save some teeth to hold dentures in , particularly lower sets,

His best bet is to visit a dentist and get a proper treatment plan with costings .

Toothsmith

(Assuming you're in England - and providing the dentist agrees this is a suitable treatment)

There would be one Band 3 treatment charge that would cover initial examination, the making of the full denture and the extractions. This is currently just over £269 in England.

This first set would only be a temporary set though, as the fit would change quite rapidly as the healing takes place - so 4-6 months later another set would be needed and a further band 3 charge payable.

Whether this is the right thing to do or not would depend on many factors, and a good honest chat is needed between you, your Dad and the dentist.

Why do you feel this is a good idea?

Is your Dad in pain? Does he have difficulty eating? Does he still 'have capacity' (the ability to make his own decisions)?

Getting a first set of dentures when elderly is not an easy process by any means.

In days gone by, when people routinely had all their teeth out in their 20s - it led to a generation of perfectly happy denture wearers for most of their lives. This is because people in their 20s are adaptable, and got through the difficulties of getting used to them, and got on with their lives.

This is not the case for people in their late 60s and upwards.

Older people are not adaptable, do not get used to the change very well, and - in all honesty, don't have as much going on in their lives to distract them from the discomfort of wearing dentures!!

When you've been used to your own teeth all your life, balancing a couple of alien bits of plastic in your mouth whilst trying to eat food as well becomes an incredibly difficult thing to do.

So just having out what's left and some nice shiny new dentures might outwardly seem like a great idea - it might easily be a terrible idea. Be guided by the dentist you see.

suki1964

Wow, so expensive

Im paying £200 private for a top set here in NI

However in saying that, I have been losing my teeth over 20 years with teeth added to the original plate as they went so it possibly has cost me loads

Duncans dad, the one thing I have to say is, a full set is a completely different kettle of fish to a partial set in terms of fit. They make the teeth higher so it has something to hold onto. Which then make your lips protrude a tiny bit and you have to learn to talk all over again.

Im going tomorrow to get my new ones, I have been in and out for fittings the best part of 3 months to get a good as fit as possible. I only have four teeth of my own left to help the fit and one of those is dodgy but my dentist is adamant that it stays while its still viable

If you can work with your dentist to keep what you have you are much better off. Seriously, if I had my time again I wish I had cured my dental phobia younger

brook2jack

There are few things you can get that are hand made and custom made for you that cost a few hundred pounds.

You will have had the undivided attention of two highly qualified people at your surgery visits and hours worth of work by a highly qualified dental technician , all in premises that cost a fortune to run.

This is an American video but gives you an idea of how much work goes into making a denture , and this is without removing teeth etc. https://youtu.be/yrU3TIdM-ic

203846930

Thanks All

Dad is in Scotland, just turned 60, no denture and lives off a private pension.

The reason for asking is that some of his real teeth are a little bit loose and although they are not falling out and he is perfectly able to eat and is not in any real pain, he would like (if possible) to get the work done before he gets too old to get comfortable and make use of the denture.
He had though that the denture could be mounted using the existing roots that already hold the crowns and bridges and add a few more using the teeth he has left to make them permanent rather than have plates.

Will obviously ask own dentist but just looking for a rough idea of costs.

Toothsmith

Well Scottish NHS dentistry is still on a fee-per-item system, rather than a course-of-treatment system, so there is much more variation in the possible cost - up to a maximum charge of £384 for one course of treatment.

All the things your Dad is considering are possible - but he'd need to see his dentist to see how suitable/appropriate they are for him.

It sounds like he has a good attitude to getting used to them, and his thoughts sound sensible.