Over the years I’ve often told people that if you got a roomful of 100 dentists and asked them what procedure they hated doing the most, probably at least 98 of them would say dentures. In the past, I would have been one of those 98. The reasons you would hear would be, “Patients complain about dentures more than anything else we do,” “There are so many factors we have no control over,” and “You never know who’s going to be able to adapt to dentures and who won’t,” just to name a few.
I no longer am one of those 98. I had the great pleasure in March 2011 to spend a week with Dr. Jack Turbyfill at the Pankey Institute in Key Biscayne, Florida. Dr. Turbyfill has long had a reputation for doing the finest dentures to anyone in the world, and I can assure you it is a reputation well deserved. I and the other dentists in attendance were absolutely blown away at what we saw and learned as Dr. Turbyfill did a demonstration of his technique on a live patient that week.
As Dr. Turbyfill explained, the problem with dentures is that they have been taught the same way for the past 100 years, and the way they have been taught is highly flawed. In fact, many of the problems we see with long-term denture wearers are a result of the flawed technique we were all taught. Dr. Turbyfill has developed a technique over the years that uses a “training denture,” which allows both the dentist and the patient to work out all the problems inherent with dentures right in the patient’s own mouth. The final dentures are never processed until the both the dentist and patient are happy with the appearance, function and comfort of the training denture. At that point, the training dentures are usually duplicated by the dental lab technician, and the new dentures are delivered to the patient, with the training dentures sometimes given to the patient as a “spare.” Because of all the meticulous work done in fabrication of the training dentures, 80% of the final dentures require no adjustments at all.
Dr. Turbyfill showed us case after case of patients who had been wearing his dentures for more than 20 years with no relines, and with no atrophy or resorption of the bony ridges under the dentures. This is unheard of in the typical denture situation. But when made properly, this type of success is indeed possible for most.
Is the new Turbyfill-technique denture going to be the answer for everyone? In a word, no. There will always be the occasional person who just cannot adapt to wearing dentures for whatever reason. But in the Turbyfill technique, these patients are few and far between, and can be identified during the training denture period.
I am proud to now be able to offer this denture technique in our office. If you or anyone you know needs dentures, or is a frustrated denture wearer, have them call us at 480-830-2273 to schedule a consultation appointment. It could be a life-changing decision for someone!
As I mentioned in our April 2011 newsletter, I had the distinct pleasure of spending a week in Florida last month with Dr. Jack Turbyfill. Dr. Turbyfill is generally considered to be the best dentist ANYWHERE at making dentures. After spending a week with Dr. Jack, I can attest that his reputation is richly deserved.
Dr. Turbyfill stated that dentures have been taught the same way for the last 100 years, using a technique that was wrong then and still wrong today. His unique approach uses a “trial denture” that allows the patient to try out the dentures, and work out all the “bugs” before the final dentures are processed. The results are dentures that in 80% of the cases require NO adjustments, and last for many years with NO relines needed and – most importantly - NO resorption of the underlying bone. These are results that are unheard of with “normal” dentures. This means the dentures cost much less as well!
All of us in attendance at this seminar were just blown away as we watched Dr. Turbyfill make a set of trial dentures for a woman who had been missing her teeth for twenty years. It made believers out of us all! I can honestly say that for the first time in my professional career (over 30 years now), I look forward to providing this service for my patients. Since returning from this experience, I have had the opportunity to incorporate Dr. Turbyfill’s techniques into our practice. What a pleasure it has been to hear patients say, “Wow, these feel great!” and leave our office delighted with the results!
Please see our website’s Dentures page for more information. If you or anyone you know needs dentures, or is a frustrated denture wearer, please refer them to us for a free denture consultation. Even denture wearers can now have confidence and comfort with their beautiful smiles! It can truly be a life-changing experience!
