dentures Archives - Susan M. Dennis, D.D.S

Problems After a Sinus Perforation

Posted on August 27, 2026 by writeradmin.

I am worried that my dentist is not taking my situation seriously enough. Here is the basic series of events:

I had my top teeth pulled out.
One of the extractions perforated my sinus. I should mention not only did they not tell me this was a possibility, but they never notified me it happened until the next day.
By the fourth day I heard popping in the left side of my nose. They told me to take Sudafed.
That night I developed a fever of 102 degrees. I called them the next day and they prescribed antibiotics.
By the seventh day I still had a fever and the pain spread to my eye. I insisted they see me.
They removed a large piece of bone. I’m thinking they should have noticed that was there before now.
They gave me a stronger antibiotic.
I’m on day eleven and I still having an infection with no relief. What do I do?

Amy

Dear Amy,

Your dentist has done quite a few things wrong here with your tooth extraction. The first thing I want you to do is contact an ENT and see if you can get an urgent appointment with them. Let them know what is going on. It sounds like your dentist has you on the wrong antibiotic. The ENT can fix that first in order to get your infection under control.

Your dentist did several things wrong in addition to having you on the wrong antibiotic. First, he should have warned you about the danger of a sinus perforation during a tooth extraction. Second, he should have told you immediately following the procedure and given you instructions on how to treat it. Finally, the treatment advice he gave you was really off, and when it was getting worse, he was not taking it seriously.

He could get in legal trouble for this, but my suggestion would be to tell him you understand everything he did wrong, but rather than make trouble for him, you would like him to cover the treatments you need to fix this.

I hope this helps and I’m sorry for all you’ve gone through. You mentioned that you extracted all the upper teeth. You didn’t mention how you’re replacing them. While dentures are fairly easy enough that any dentist could do it, if you’re getting dental implants, which would be the better option, I am not confident that your current dentist is the right one to do that. I would look for a dentist with post-doctoral training in dental implants. This is a very advanced procedure and a lot more can go wrong than a sinus perforation.

This blog is brought to you by a compassionate dentist in Kalamazoo, Dr. Susan Dennis.

How Can I Avoid Ending Up with Botched Dental Implants?

Posted on June 30, 2026 by writeradmin.

A friend of mine recently had dental implants done and it ended up a complete disaster. The dentist did such a bad job, that she ended up losing part of her jaw. She’s in a lawsuit with the dentist that she is likely to win, but that’s costing her massive amounts of time and stress. Not to mention her jaw will never be the same and she still needs her teeth replaced. I know this doesn’t always happen. I am getting implant soon. How can I avoid getting a botched dental implant case?

Evie

Dear Evie,

Illustration of dental implants

I completely understand your concern and am heart broken for what your friend has gone through. There are a lot of dental implant horror stories. One of the reasons for this is that there is not a recognized specialty in dental implants. Any general dentist can legally do it. But, it is one of the most advanced procedures out there.

When done well, dental implants are the best tooth replacement option and have one of the highest long-term success rates in dentistry. When not done well and dental implant failure ensues, patients face additional surgeries, expense, and months of frustration and sometimes physical agony.

So how can you avoid this?

Careful Pre-Diagnostics are Essential

A dental implant requires surgery to embed the implant fixture deep in your bone. Before anything else, your dentist should do a series of diagnostics to ensure no intervention needs to happen prior to that surgery. Diagnostics need to be done before treatment even begins. This enables you and your dentist to take steps to give you the best chance of success. Proper diagnosis and planning are just as important as the surgery itself. Make sure your dentist evaluates these factors:

Comprehensive imaging. They should do more than an x-ray here. You need a CT scan. It’s essential to have 3-dimensional imaging. This will help a dentist with proper placement, helping them to avoid nerves and protecting the patient from sinus perforation.
The health of your gums. If there is sign of gum disease, this needs to be treated ahead of time.
Your overall health. This is a pretty easy one. You need to be in good general health.
Adequate bone structure. Your teeth are held in by the bone integrating with the tooth root. In order for dental implants to stay in place, you need adequate jawbone to help retain them. If not, you can have a bone grafting treatment done ahead of time to build up the bone you need.

Make Sure Your Dentist Has Dental Implant Training

You also want to make sure your dentist has the training needed. Implants are not adequately taught in dental school. It is essential that your dentist has post-doctoral training. Because dental implant treatment combines surgery and restorative dentistry, communication is essential between the dentist and the oral surgeon. It needs to be the dentist who plans the implant placement, not the oral surgeon. Do not hesitate to ask how closely they work with the surgeon they use.

Additionally, you want to know a bit about their skill and experience. Do they do a lot of implant procedures? Make sure they define a lot. What is is their success rate? I would look for a dentist with a 95% or above success rate. If a dentist bristles at these questions, that is a red flag.

I know I’ve thrown a lot at you, so here is a short list of questions to help you to choose the right provider:

Am I a good implant candidate?
Will I need bone grafting?
What imaging will be used to plan my treatment?
Where did you get your post-doctoral implant training?
How many of these procedures have you done?
What is your success rate?
What follow up do you plan to make sure things are going well?
What happens if complications arise?

A qualified, reputable dentist will welcomes these conversations. They should also discuss all your options along with their pros and cons, from implants all the way down to complete removable dentures (or partials if you only need a few teeth replaced).

Finding the right dentist is your best chance of having a successful procedure. I hope this makes you feel confident that you can choose the right dentist and puts your mind at ease.

This blog is brought to you by a compassionate dentist in Kalamazoo, Dr. Susan Dennis.

Can I Prevent My Jaw Collapsing with Dentures?

Posted on December 3, 2025 by writeradmin.

I have been diagnosed with a calcium deficiency. My dentist feels my teeth are a losing battle, but I’m only in my 30s. the idea of being in dentures at my age has me absolutely in tears. If I do have to lose all my teeth and get dentures, is there any way for me to prevent my jaw from collapsing? I don’t want to look like my grandmother.

Ada

Dear Ada,

If you are ever in the unfortunate position of losing all of your teeth, then there is a way to prevent facial collapse. What you will have to do is convince your body that you still have teeth, so that it will leave your jawbone intact in order to retain the teeth. If you get dental implants, they serve as prosthetic teeth roots, which will prevent facial collapse. You can anchor your dentures to the dental implants and they will remain secure. It is a much better solution than completely removable dentures.

Before you do that, I want you to get a second opinion. A calcium deficiency in adulthood has no effect on your teeth, which are already fully formed. If your dentist is using that as the reason than I have my doubts about his integrity. In that case, it is more likely that he is one of those dentists who does not enjoy fixing teeth. He’d rather just extract them. You can do better than that.

If you are diligent with your oral healthcare and are still having more than the normal amount of tooth problems. Sometimes it is just genetic. Sometimes it is a medication you are on. Or, it could be that you snack a lot. Snacking a lot between meals makes it hard for the minerals in your mouth to do their job in fighting bacteria. Limiting snacking could help.

A calcium deficiency does cause problems with your body, including nerve damage and osteoporosis, so you want to take it seriously and get the treatment you need. However, you don’t have to worry about it damaging your teeth.

This blog is brought to you by a gentle dentist in Kalamazoo Dr. Susan Dennis.

Are Dental Implants the Best Option for My Mother?

Posted on September 22, 2025 by writeradmin.

My mother is 82 years old. She has a dental bridge for most of her upper teeth. Now the dentist is telling her that she needs to remove her lower teeth now and get a dental implant supported bridge. He stressed the implants were necessary because it was her lower jaw and without it she’d be dealing with facial collapse. My concern is that she is very frail at this point in her life and on several medications. Is this really the best option for her?

Amy

Dear Amy,

I am sorry you and your mother are having to deal with this. Let me say first, that while facial collapse is a serious side effect of removable dentures, in your mother’s case, I do not think the benefits outway the risks.

Let me explain a bit about facial collapse. Whenever someone’s teeth are removed, their body immediately recognizes that. As a result, it begins a mineral resorption process. Because there are no longer any teeth roots, the body interprets that as you not needing those minerals to support your teeth. It resorbs those minerals in order to use them where it perceives they will be more needed. This has the unfortunate side effect of shrinking the jawbone. Eventually, there is not enough jawbone left for the dentures to stay in.

Having dental implants prevents that from happening because the implants serve as prosthetic tooth roots and signals to your body that you still have teeth which need to be secured. Because of that it leaves your jawbone intact.

The process of facial collapse takes about ten years to really start making a huge difference. Given your mother’s age, I’m not sure this will be a problem for her. As she also has health issues, I don’t think it will be worth the risk. Instead, she can just have removable dentures. This will be easier on both of you.

This blog is brought to you by Portage, MI Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Dentist Lost His License Before Finishing My Dental Implants

Posted on March 8, 2025 by writeradmin.

I paid for a full treatment of dental implants along with two Zygomatic implants because of my bone structure. The dentist required that the entire procedure be paid for ahead of time. He did get the implants placed, but then he lost his dental license. I do not understand the circumstances behind him losing the license. My big problem is that I do not have the dentures placed. I’ve been wearing temporaries for quite some time now. Is there a way for me to get a refund on the part that isn’t finished so I can afford to have another dentist to complete the work?

Adrian

Dear Adrian,

I am sorry that this happened to you. If the dentist lost his license, it would probably had sold his practice in order to get some money to live on while he comes up with a plan B for his life. The dentist that purchased that practice would also be responsible for the contracts of that practice, so they should be required to place your permanent dentures.

If that doesn’t work, I recommend you talk to the local dental board there in order to ask them what they suggest your next step should be. This has to be a situation that they have dealt with before.

Because you do not know the reason that he lost his license, I would feel better if you had the dental implants looked at before you see the new dentist that purchased your dentist’s practice. It’s possible that they are not properly placed. If that is the case, the new dentist may be hesitant to admit that because he’d be the one stuck with fixing them. This way if you get an independent second opinion you will be in a better position.

I hope things work out for you quickly with this situation.
This blog is brought to you by Portage, MI Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Discouraged About Teeth

Posted on November 6, 2024 by writeradmin.

I’ve grew up in a home where my parents could not afford to take us to the dentist. They did their best under difficult circumstances. Then, in college I was barely surviving. Now that I have a real job, I’ve been going to the dentist to get my oral health under control. I’ve needed a LOT of work and it often feels like I’m facing a losing battle. My dentist has suggested that I just get dentures. I really don’t want to do that. I’m in my 20s! Do you have advice for someone who is trying to catch up with a lifetime of neglected dental work?

Sabrina

Dear Sabrina,

I am glad you wrote. The first thing I am going to say is that you are not the with best dentist for your particular situation. Dentists vary in their willingness to work to save teeth which are in bad shape. Some prefer just to extract them. There also may be some part of him that is judging you based on the state of your teeth thinking that you don’t care about them. While that is not fair or true, it is a possibility and does happen.

Your first order of business would be to switch to a dentist who puts saving as much natural tooth structure as possible. However, I also want you to make sure that they are also a sedation dentist. The reason for that is the amount of work you need done. Using dental sedation makes it possible for you to get more work done at each appointment. This will allow you to catch up faster on your needed work.

Whatever you do, do NOT listen to your current dentist and remove all of your teeth. If you ever do lose all your teeth for some horrible reason, do NOT get removable dentures. That will completely destroy your ability to eat. In the short term, your ability to chew will be reduced by a minimum of 50%, even with the best fitting dentures. In the long term, you’ll end up dealing with facial collapse and after about ten years will not even be able to keep your dentures in your mouth.

If complete tooth loss does happen, the solution to this would be to have implant supported dentures placed. This has between four to eight dental implants placed in your jaw and then a set of dentures will be anchored to them. These will be completely secure and you will not have to fear bone loss.

That being said. I think you can save your teeth. Find a dentist who is willing to try.
This blog is brought to you by Portage, MI Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Should I Keep My Last Two Teeth?

Posted on July 2, 2024 by writeradmin.

I have been losing teeth left and right. I’m about to be down to just my two front upper teeth. My lower teeth are fairly healthy for now. I have two partial dentures on the top and I hate them. Really hate them. They move around too much. My question is, should I keep these last two upper teeth and stick with the two partials or just give up and have them extracted and get myself complete upper dentures. Would they be more comfortable? I know it is better to keep as much natural tooth structure as possible, but I’m just miserable with these partial dentures. I can’t really eat with them in and usually take them out and eat with just the two front teeth, which has caused me to retrain myself on how to eat and it is mostly a soft diet.

Andy

Dear Andy,

Bear in mind that I have not examined you or seen any x-rays. I’m basing this on just how this was described, but I think I’m grasping your situation. While in most cases it is better to keep your natural teeth, I think in your specific case is a bit different. First, I do not think that your last two upper teeth will last much longer if all the stress of eating is placed on them. Removing those last two upper teeth and getting dentures would be fine.

If you are looking for the best possible situation in your case, I would get implant supported dentures. The dental implants will help you eat again. They are the closest thing to having healthy, natural teeth in your mouth again. You’d even be able to eat steak if that was something you enjoy eating. They are expensive, though.

If you were talking about your lower arch, I would say it was essential that you get the implant overdentures. This is because when you don’t have any teeth, your body resorbs the minerals in your jawbone to use elsewhere in your body. While your upper dentures are held in by suction, your lower dentures just rest on the ridge of your jawbone. With the minerals being resorbed, it will mean that you eventually will not have enough jawbone left to even keep in your dentures. In dental circles, this is known as facial collapse.

Having the dental implants in your jaw signals to your body that you still have teeth and need the material in your jawbone to retain them.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Mixed Message about Hip Replacements and Dental Implants

Posted on January 29, 2023 by Dr. Dennis.

I’m not sure which dentist is right. I want to get a few dental implants in order to retain an upcoming denture. In my medical history, the first dentist saw I had a hip replacement a few years before. He said because of that, I’d need to pre-medicate with antibiotics before the implant procedure. The second dentist I had a consult with said it wouldn’t matter. Which dentist is correct?

Misty

Dear Misty,

It’s not a matter of correct and incorrect as much as a preference issue. Until about 2012 it was the standard recommendation. The thinking was without antibiotics you are at risk of getting an infection in your hip joint. However, in 2012 the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons said there is is no evidence to back up those concerns.

However some dentists still prefer to do it, even with patients who do not have a hip replacement, dentists will sometimes recommend it out of concern for an infection in the bone surrounding the implant.

It’s up to you which dentist you see. More important than whether or not you get pre-medicated is who places your dental implant.

Finding an Implant Dentist

There are two stages of placing dental implants. The first is the surgery. The second is the restoration. It’s imperative your dentist has invested in post-doctoral training for dental implants. This is an advanced procedure and dental school isn’t enough.

Additionally, you need to know whether or not the dentist or an oral surgeon will be placing the implant. Either way, they need to be experienced in implant surgery. Don’t hesitate to ask how many implants they’ve done and what their success rate is.

Benefits of Securing Your Denture with Dental Implants

It’s great that you’re securing your dentures. This will have incredible benefits for you. First, they’ll be secure. When you wear dentures without anchoring them, there is nothing to keep them from slipping out. However, the biggest benefit is the prevention of facial collapse. Not only will facial collapse make you look years older, but it will also make you a dental cripple. Getting dental implants prevents that.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Botched Dental Implants are Starving Me

Posted on October 13, 2022 by Dr. Dennis.

I need help and absolutely do not know what to do. I haven’t been able to eat in over a year. This started when I first started my dental implant procedure. I’ve been on a liquid diet ever since and have lost 70 lbs. It hurt before they placed the implant-supported denture; however, ever since they placed the actual denture I’ve been in constant, excruciating pain. They say everything’s fine and I’ll adjust but I just don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m starving to death.

Conner M.

Dear Conner,

Wow! I’m so sorry that you’re facing this and appalled at how your dentist is handling the situation. First, tell your dentist you’ll be contacting the dental board and you want a full refund. Then, follow through. Next, go see your medical doctor. I don’t want you starving to death. He may be able to get you a port to help you eat until this is repaired.

The next step is to get a second opinion from a different dentist, one who’s invested a significant amount of post-graduate study in implant training. Look at Dr. Dennis’ dental implants page to get an idea of the type of investment I’m talking about.

Getting Your Dental Implants Fixed

When you get your second opinion, I’m going to highly suggest you don’t tell them who the dentist is that placed them until AFTER they give their opinion on your case. The reason for this is human nature. It’s very likely the two dentists know each other and are even friends. If they know who it is they may feel awkward saying something negative about a friend’s work.

Hopefully, the solution will be simple and maybe it’s just the dentures that need to be adjusted. If it turns out the implants were placed incorrectly, you can have them done again but you’ll have to have bone grafting done in order for there to be enough bone structure to support the implants.

This blog is brought to you by Portage Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Is Gum Disease Really that Serious?

Posted on October 3, 2022 by Dr. Dennis.

I moved and started with a new dentist. He insists I have gum disease and need to come in every two months, instead of every six. If this was really that serious, why didn’t my previous dentist ever bring it up? He always gave me a clean bill of health. I can’t imagine any reason to go this often.

Brenda

Dear Brenda,

There are two possibilities here. One, your old dentist was a tad negligent. It’s possible your old dentist didn’t give your gums the attention he should have, allowing your gum disease to go unchecked. Believe it or not, that happens more often than it should.

A second possibility is your new dentist is incorrect. To find out which, is simply a matter of getting a second opinion. Some dentists will even give a free second opinion.

If it turns out your new dentist is correct, then he is literally saving your teeth. When you have severe gum disease, it ends up causing you to lose bone. This makes your teeth come loose. They can even fall out if the gum disease isn’t brought under control.

The thing to do in that case is see your dentist every two months in order to get it under control.

If You Ignore the Gum Disease

It is always the patient’s choice in how they move forward. I just want to make sure you understand the consequences of not treating it if that is what you decide.

As I mentioned above, you could lose your teeth. To replace them, have two main options. First, you can have removable dentures, even the best of which will reduce your chewing capacity by 50%. Or second, you can have implant overdentures. These use around six dental implants to secure your dentures to your jaw.

The implant-supported dentures are the better option, however it requires surgery and is quite pricey.

You will save a ton of money by getting your gum disease treated.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.