Denture and mouth assessment
We check the fit, the bite, the wear on the teeth and the state of the acrylic, examine the gum for pressure sores or overgrowth and assess how much the ridge has changed.
About this treatmentDental condition · Wimpole Street, Marylebone
Loose denture: why the fit changes over time and the ways it can be restored
A denture that once stayed put and now slips, rocks or drops when you laugh has usually not changed at all. What has changed is the mouth beneath it. The bone that once held the natural teeth is no longer stimulated by their roots and gradually shrinks, so a denture made to fit a particular ridge finds itself sitting on a smaller one within a few years. The result is movement, food creeping underneath, sore patches where the edges rub, and a growing reliance on adhesive to get through a meal. Lower full dentures are the worst affected because they have the least to hold on to and the tongue and cheeks constantly push against them. The good news is that the situation is rarely hopeless. Depending on how much the ridge has changed and the condition of the denture itself, the fit can be restored by relining, by remaking, or by anchoring the denture to implants so it no longer depends on suction at all. Our Wimpole Street dentists will tell you which is realistic for your mouth.
Recognising it
How it usually feels
The denture lifts when you talk, yawn or bite into food
The seal between the denture base and the ridge has been lost.
Food working its way underneath
Gaps between the base and the gum where the ridge has shrunk.
Sore spots or ulcers along the edges
An unstable denture rocks and its borders rub the same places repeatedly.
Increasing use of fixative
Adhesive compensating for a fit that has deteriorated.
Cheeks and lips looking more sunken
Bone loss reducing the support the denture and the face once had.
Behind the symptoms
What's going on
- 01
Shrinkage of the jaw ridge
Bone needs the load of tooth roots to maintain itself. Once teeth are gone it resorbs steadily, fastest in the first year and continuing for life. The ridge becomes lower and narrower, and a denture made for the old shape loses contact with the new one.
- 02
Worn or damaged denture teeth
Acrylic teeth wear down over years of chewing. As the biting surfaces flatten, the way upper and lower dentures meet changes, and the altered forces can unseat them during eating even if the base still fits reasonably.
- 03
A warped or fractured base
Acrylic can distort if the denture is left to dry out, soaked in hot water or dropped. A hairline crack in the base allows it to flex, and a flexing denture cannot hold suction.
- 04
Weight change and illness
Significant weight loss thins the tissues under and around the denture, and some illnesses and medications reduce the saliva that a denture needs to seal. A well-fitting denture can become loose in months after either.
- 05
A denture that was never quite right
Immediate dentures fitted at the time of extractions are expected to loosen as the sockets heal. Dentures made on a poor impression, or extended too far, may have relied on adhesive from the start.
Before your appointment
What you can do today
- Take the denture out at night to rest the gum and let any sore spots heal; keep it in water so the acrylic does not dry and distort.
- Clean it daily with a soft brush and denture cleaner, not toothpaste, which scratches the surface and encourages plaque.
- Use a small amount of fixative for confidence if you need to, but treat it as a stopgap rather than a solution.
- Do not attempt to adjust, file or repair the denture yourself; home relining kits and glue usually make a professional repair harder.
These are holding measures, not a substitute for an examination. Use any pain relief exactly as directed on the pack and check with a pharmacist if you take other medicines.
In the chair
How we treat it at Wimpole Street
Easing sore spots
Pressure-indicating paste shows exactly where the denture is bearing too hard, and those areas are relieved so the ulcers can heal, usually within a week.
About this treatmentRelining
A new layer of acrylic is added to the fitting surface so that it matches the current shape of the ridge. Suitable when the teeth and bite are still good, and completed in one or two visits with a laboratory turnaround.
About this treatmentA new denture
When the teeth are worn, the base is cracked or the ridge has changed too much, a new denture made to the present shape of the mouth gives a fresh start. We can copy features you liked from the old one.
About this treatmentPartial denture redesign
Where a partial has lost its grip, clasps can be adjusted or replaced, or a cobalt-chrome or flexible design made that uses the remaining teeth more effectively.
About this treatmentImplant-retained dentures
Two to four implants with clips or a bar hold a denture firmly in place while still allowing you to remove it for cleaning. Transformative for loose lower dentures in particular.
About this treatmentFees
Costs to expect
A denture assessment at Wimpole Street is expected to be £95, and minor easing of sore spots is often done within that visit. Relines and repairs are quoted individually once we have seen the denture, as the fee depends on the material and whether a laboratory stage is needed.
A new acrylic partial denture is indicative from £795 and a full acrylic denture from £1,095. A cobalt-chrome partial is £1,395 and a flexible partial £895. Implant-retained overdentures are planned individually, with implants from £2,950 each and the denture attachments quoted alongside, and we set out the total in writing before any stage begins.
Figures are indicative prices for Wimpole Street and are confirmed in a written plan once a dentist has examined you. Fees match our South Kensington and St Paul's clinics.
Don't wait if
When to see a dentist
- Your denture moves during eating or speaking despite adhesive.
- You have a sore area that has not healed in ten days.
- The gum under the denture looks red, swollen or has developed a flap.
- The base has cracked or a tooth has come off.
- It has been more than a year since the denture was checked.
FAQ
Common questions
Most dentures benefit from a reline every two to three years as the ridge changes, and are replaced after roughly five to seven years when the teeth have worn and the acrylic has aged. These are averages: some patients go longer, and rapid bone loss or weight change shortens the interval.
The product itself is not harmful when used as directed, but relying on it daily means the denture is moving on the gum, and constant movement accelerates bone loss and causes soreness. Think of fixative as a signal that the fit needs attention rather than a long-term answer.
The upper denture covers the palate and gains suction from a large, stable surface. The lower has only a narrow horseshoe of ridge, shares the space with a mobile tongue, and is pushed by the cheeks and lips. Loose lower dentures are the single commonest denture complaint, and implants are the most reliable fix.
A resilient lining cushions a thin or sharp ridge and helps some patients considerably. It wears faster than hard acrylic and needs replacing more often, and it is harder to keep clean, so we recommend it selectively rather than routinely.
Age itself is not a barrier; healthy patients in their eighties have implant-retained dentures placed routinely. What matters is general health, bone volume and the ability to keep the attachments clean. Two implants in the lower jaw is a well-established, relatively minor procedure that changes the daily experience of wearing a denture dramatically.
Marylebone, W1
Wimpole Street opens 1 October 2026
Leave your details and we will be in touch when the Marylebone diary opens. If the problem cannot wait, the same clinicians are already seeing patients in South Kensington and at St Paul's.
Related conditions
Opening 1 October 2026
Wimpole Street is not yet seeing patients. Until then, please book or call our South Kensington clinic on 020 7183 2362 or our St Paul's clinic on 020 7183 3709. Questions about the new clinic: wimpolestreet@md.co.uk.
Until we open
Need an appointment before 1 October 2026?
The same clinical team already works from two other Medical & Dental clinics. Book at either one now and, if you prefer, move your ongoing care to Wimpole Street once the doors open.
South Kensington
- 20 Old Brompton Road, London SW7 3DL
- Open seven days a week
- 020 7183 2362
St Paul's, City of London
- 5 Ave Maria Lane, London EC4M 7AQ
- Open Monday to Friday
- 020 7183 3709
