Image 1: Smiling woman showing her healthy teeth outdoors after a successful dental treatment.

Dentures and Snap-ins (removable)

Infographics showing implant supported Snap in Dentures - Oak Mountain Denture and Implant Center.

High-Quality Dentures near Birmingham

Need to replace a full set of teeth? At Oak Mountain, we are your local Shelby County experts in restoring beautiful smiles. Dr. Kwolek brings a tremendous level of expertise and a lab full of cutting edge digital technology to offer a truly unique experience – fast and efficient like the big businesses, with care and attention to detail that you will only find in a family-run shop.

What Are Dentures?

This treatment involves a single removable appliance to replace a full set of teeth on the top or bottom. Whether you’ve been going without teeth or your current smile can’t be saved, we can offer an attractive solution that allows you to smile with confidence. We can also provide a snap-in denture for the bottom jaw so you can get back to eating the old foods you once enjoyed!

We also offer immediate smiles on the same day as extractions, so you’ll never step outside with missing teeth.

Complete upper and lower denture set displayed in gloved hands

How Do Dentures Work?

Top dentures can often get natural suction from the shape of the palate. Sometimes a light layer of adhesive is needed to help them stay in place, but either way, the are often secure enough for eating and talking comfortably.

Bottom dentures, however, do not have a good shape for suction due to the horseshoe design and the position of the tongue. This means they often slip or fall out when eating or speaking. However, there is one fantastic solution for this problem, and we can make it work with all budgets:

Why We Recommend a “Snap-in” for the Bottom

For better stability and confidence, we always recommend placing at least two dental implants on the bottom. These allow the lower teeth to “snap” in and out using small metal buttons. Think of it like buttoning a kid’s raincoat.

This option will dramatically improve the way you eat, laugh, and speak, and can eliminate the worry of slippage and embarrassing situations.

FAQs:

This depends on what you have already when you come to see us. We have the technology to make prosthetics very quickly, but we also have very high standards, meaning we only allow patients to leave with beautiful smiles. We will not take shortcuts if it compromises the smile in any way. Normally, if you come in with an old denture (even one you don’t like), we can offer a brand new beautiful smile with proper fit in 1 to 2 visits (within a week). If you come with nothing at all, it will normally be 3 visits or so as we start from scratch.

A well cared-for denture can last for many years. However, this can vary depending on the patient’s jaw strength, hygiene, salivary content, and other factors. Someone who carefully follows cleaning instructions and has a gentle bite may see a decade of use. On the other hand, a large powerful jaw with acidic saliva can wear down your teeth over a few years. The patient is the ultimate judge here – as long as your smile feels good, looks good, and allows you to function, then no problem!

This comes down to the shape of your bone and gums after your extractions have healed. The normal situation is that the top denture stays in place pretty well either by itself or with light adhesive. The bottom tends to slip and slide, so if you want to get back to eating solid foods like sandwiches and chicken, it is worth looking into dental implants for the lower jaw. Please ask about our financing partners who make this treatment available to all patients.

See our cleaning information page here: Home Care (Dentures)

Dentist holding full denture model for patient education

Want to know more?

We’re happy to help you figure out whether this treatment is right for you. Reach out today to schedule your free consultation!

The Oak Mountain Denture and Implant Center proudly serves the people of Alabama, including Shelby County, Hoover, and greater Birmingham.

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