Can you help me? I’m really worried that I am allergic to my dentures. I hope I am not because they fit really well and I’m told that is a rarity. Here’s what has been happening.
Day 1: At first everything was fine but after about six hours, I started having swollen glands and some swelling around the eyes.
Day 2: Same symptoms as before, but then my throat started to swell. I took some allergy meds and that seemed to help.
Day 3: Same symptoms, but more exaggerated. I grew a bit afraid that my throat was going to close up so I took allergy pills and removed the dentures. The symptoms eventually subsided. I left them out for a few days.
Day 7: I put the dentures back in and the symptoms started again.
I think I know that the answer is that I am allergic to the dentures, but I am hoping there is something that can be done because they really fit well.
Eileen
Dear Eileen,
Yes, it definitely sounds like you are allergic to these dentures. Having the allergy medication help pretty much cinches the conclusion. The first thing I am going to tell you is not to wear them until this is sorted out. Allergies can turn life-threatening and you were wise to discontinue the use when your throat was swelling. It could easily have closed up on you and made it impossible to breathe.
Next, you want to determine exactly what it is that you are allergic to. This will require that you see an allergist. One possibility is that you are allergic to the unreacted monomer. When acrylic is used to form a denture, it starts off in the liquid form. A chemical reaction is used to turn it into a polymer and cause it to harden. However, as with many chemical reactions, there are leftover reactants. In this case, it is the monomer. If it turns out that it is the unreacted monomer that you are allergic to, then you can have your dentist immerse it in very hot water for several hours. There is some research from the National Library of Medicine that says this is quite effective in reacting the remainder of the monomer.
A second alternative would be to have your dentist remake the denture using a different kind of material.
I do want to make certain that you are aware of the long-term dangers of wearing completely removable dentures. Your body will begin resorbing the minerals in your jawbone to use elsewhere in your body because you no longer have any tooth roots that it needs to support. Unfortunately, this will begin to shrink your jawbone until there is no longer enough of your jawbone left to retain your denture. This is known in dental circles as facial collapse. The way to prevent this is to anchor your dentures to some dental implants.
Unless you are “up there” in years, I think it would be a good idea to look into dental implants while you are figuring out what you are allergic to.
This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.