facial collapse Archives - Susan M. Dennis, D.D.S

Why Do My New Dentures Make Me Look Older?

Posted on August 8, 2026 by writeradmin.

I recently replaced my old dentures. The new ones fit better, but I hate how I look in them. My lips seem thinner, the area around my mouth looks sunken, and when I smile, the teeth look too small. I feel like these dentures aged me ten years. My dentist says they fit correctly and I just need to get used to them. Can anything be done, or am I being too picky?

Marilyn

Dear Marilyn,

Before and after facial collapse.

You are not being too picky. Dentures do much more than replace teeth. They also help support your lips and cheeks, influence the proportions of your face, and shape your smile. A denture can “fit correctly” in the sense that it stays in your mouth and allows you to chew, yet still fall short aesthetically.

You deserve dentures that help you feel comfortable and confident—not dentures that make you want to hide your smile.

Why Dentures Can Change the Appearance of Your Face

Teeth That Are Too Small

Denture teeth need to be chosen with your facial proportions, age, and natural smile in mind. Teeth that are too small or too short may not show sufficiently when you speak or smile. This can contribute to an older-looking appearance.

The opposite problem can also occur. Teeth that are too large, too bright, or too perfectly uniform may look artificial. Creating beautiful cosmetic dentures requires artistic judgment as well as technical skill.

An Incorrect Bite Height

When your upper and lower jaws are too close together, the lower third of your face can look compressed. This may make the chin appear closer to the nose and deepen the lines around the mouth.

Dentists call this measurement the vertical dimension. Determining the correct vertical dimension is an important part of designing dentures that are both attractive and functional. It can also affect your comfort, speech, and ability to chew.

Teeth Positioned Incorrectly

Even attractive denture teeth can look wrong if they are not positioned well. Their angle and placement affect how much tooth shows, how your lips are supported, and whether your smile looks natural.

This is one reason the wax try-in stage is so important. It gives the dentist and patient an opportunity to evaluate the tooth shape, color, size, and arrangement before the final denture is completed.

Insufficient Support for Your Lips and Cheeks

Natural teeth and their roots help support the lower portion of your face. After teeth are removed, the jawbone gradually loses volume through a process called resorption. As the ridge supporting a denture becomes smaller, the lips and cheeks may begin to look sunken.

A well-designed denture cannot replace lost bone, but its shape can provide some support for the soft tissues of your face. If the denture does not provide enough support, your lips may look thinner and the folds around your mouth can appear deeper.

That being said, you didn’t mention how long you’ve been in dentures. That shrinking of your bone is known in dental circles as facial collapse. It can not only age your appearance by decades, but eventually you will not be able to keep your dentures in your mouth no matter how many new ones your dentist makes.

Do You Just Need Time to Adjust?

There is an adjustment period with any new denture. It can take time to become accustomed to speaking, chewing, and swallowing with it. Minor areas of discomfort may also require adjustment.

However, time will not make teeth that are too small become larger. It will not correct an inadequate vertical dimension or provide facial support that was not built into the denture. If you dislike the fundamental appearance of your smile, it is reasonable to ask your dentist to evaluate why.

If is it not a matter of facial collapse, then, start by explaining the specific changes you see. Photographs taken before you lost your natural teeth—or even photographs of you wearing your previous dentures—may help your dentist understand the appearance you want.

Dealing with Facial Collapse

If bone loss and your dentists slipping are an issue, the solution is implant overdentures. These are done by have dental implants placed in your jaw and then your dentures can be anchored to them.

However, your lost bone will have to be replaced first. This can be done with a bone grafting procedure.

Implants will not automatically correct an unattractive smile, however. The visible denture still needs to be designed by a dentist who understands facial proportions, tooth selection, and smile aesthetics, but they will prevent facial collapse and keep your dentures secure. There will be no more slipping and sliding, but you will also be able to eat anything you want again without any problem chewing.

Even if you are not dealing with facial collapse now, you will. It is an inevitable result of completely removable dentures. I hope your dentist warned you about that when you consulted him about dentures.

Get a Second Opinion Before Starting Over

Do not rush into having another denture made without first determining what went wrong with this one. Look for a dentist with experience in both restorative and cosmetic dentistry. They should look at:

The support provided to your lips and cheeks
The height and proportions of your lower face
The size, shape, color, and position of the teeth
Your bite and jaw comfort
The fit and stability of the denture
The condition of your jawbone

When you do get that second opinion, make sure you don’t tell them who your dentist is. The dental world is a small one. It’s better if he or she doesn’t know. That way they can give you an unbiased opinion.

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

Do I Have to Get Dentures?

Posted on April 6, 2026 by writeradmin.

I have periodontal disease and have lost three teeth and have a few more that are loose. My dentist is suggesting I get them all out and get dentures. While I will understand if I have to loose the teeth, do I have to get dentures? Would it be possible for me to get dental implants instead?

Angela

Dear Angela,

Before and after facial collapse.

Dental implants are a fantastic choice for replacing your teeth. They act as prosthetic tooth roots, which signals to your body that you still have your teeth there. This is important because without that, your body assumes you no longer have teeth to secure and it begins to resorb the minerals in your jawbone in order to use them where they will be more useful in your body. The unfortunate side effect of this is that your jawbone will slowly shrink. If you were wearing completely removable dentures, eventually, around ten years or so, you will no longer have enough of your jawbone left to keep in dentures. This is known as facial collapse.

It sounds like your periodontal disease is rather advanced. If so, you will want to get that under control as quickly as possible. Otherwise, you’ll end up losing even more teeth. It’s likely that you have lost bone in the area of the teeth which came loose. In order to get dental implants for those. It will be worth it because your quality of life will go up significantly with regard to eating.

Before you pull all your teeth, I’d feel better if you were able to have another dentist look at your bite. Some dentists are more willing than others to do the work necessary to save teeth. It may be that most of your teeth are saveable and this dentist just prefers to extract teeth and move on.

Even though dental implants are the closest to having healthy, natural teeth, your own natural teeth are still better.

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

Do I Need an Oral Surgeon for Bone Grafting?

Posted on March 14, 2026 by writeradmin.

I’ve been losing my teeth. I was hoping to get dental implants but my dentist said that I’d need to see an oral surgeon and get bone grafting, so He recommends I just get dentures. I have a friend who had bone grafting done by her dentist and the dental implants. I’m not sure why I have to use an oral surgeon.

Maggie

Dear Maggie,

Before and after facial collapse.

There are are dentists who have trained and do bone grafting. However, it sounds like your dentist isn’t one of them. Don’t push him into it. The fact that he is pushing you toward dentures, tells me that he doesn’t know how to do dental implants either. I also wouldn’t push him into that. There are countless dental implant horror stories by patients whose dentists had no idea what they were doing. Some of them even lost part of their jaw.

I have to say that I don’t think you’re with the best dentist. Completely removable dentures are not a good thing for you in the long term. When your teeth are removed, your body begins to resorb the minerals in your jawbone in order to use them elsewhere in your body.

This results in your body being able to use its resources wisely. The side effect, however, is that your jawbone will slowly shrink. Eventually, you will no longer be able to even keep your dentures in place. In dental circles, this is known as facial collapse. Because of that, I think it is important that you go with your original plan to get bone grafting and dental implants. You’ll just have to do it with another dentist. If your friend’s dentist is local, you may consider having him or her do it. Otherwise, I would look for a dentist who has post-doctoral training in dental implants along with a high success rate.

This blog is brought to you by a friendly 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.

Can’t Afford Anything By Dentures

Posted on December 1, 2025 by writeradmin.

I am in tears. I have teeth that are falling apart and my dentist says that it is not worth it for me to keep working on them. He’s suggesting that I just extract them and get dental implants. I saw that they can look great and will stay in your mouth, but they are super expensive. I can’t afford that. I’m on my own and don’t make a lot of money. If I can’t find a way to get them at a discount, then I am left with dentures, which is the last thing I want at they age of 34. I’ve been crying since I saw the price. If I agreed to do an advertisement or something for a dentist would they give me the dental implants? I look great except for my teeth.

Jessica

Dear Jessica,

Before you jump into extracting your teeth, I suggest that you get a second opinion on your teeth. Dentists have varying degrees of willingness to work hard to save teeth. Yours may be one who just wants to extract them and be done with it. Another dentist may be wiling to save your teeth and then you won’t need the implants.

If it turns out that you do need to replace your teeth, doing advertisements for a dentist is unlikely to get you free or even discounted dental implants. This is because the dentist can get people to do those for free. Needing to replace your teeth is stressful. I know you are in a tough spot and I understand that you are scared. There are a few options that may make your dental implants more affordable.

Generally, when patients gets implant supported dentures, they get four to six dental implants and anchor the dentures to them. You could instead get just two implants for your dentures. These are known as snap on dentures. It will at least secure the dentures and help prevent facial collapse.

Another option is to try an institution that teaches dentists how to place dental implants. Because the dentist is learning and will be working with an instructor, appointments will take longer. To make up for the inconvenience to you in time, they will do the procedure at a discount.

If neither of these work for you, then you could start with the removable dentures while you save up for the implants.

This blog is brought to you by compassionate 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.

New Denture Won’t Stay In

Posted on April 15, 2025 by writeradmin.

I had a denture done, but have problems from the beginning. He did an impression, a wax bite, and two wax try-ins. I noticed on the second try-in that the denture wasn’t staying in, which alarmed me. I mentioned it to the dentist who said that is not a problem because that try in was about the teeth and nothing else. But, guess what? When the final denture was done it wouldn’t stay in. There was no suction. My dentist said to give it a week in order for my gums to adjust to the denture. After a week, there was no change. I went back to see my dentist. He said that there was probably an issue with the bite. He ground down some of the back teeth, gave me some fixodent, and told me to give it yet another week for my gums to adjust. As I was checking out, I heard him whispering something to his assistant about doing something called a reline if this doesn’t work. Should I trust him and do this if that is where we end up?

Kevin

Dear Kevin,

I’ll say up front that I’m not impressed. Telling you that your gums will adjust is bogus and a stalling tactic. However, this can be fixed. First, the good news. A reline should be a good solution for your situation if done right. Here is where I think your dentist went wrong and you will want to prevent that with the reline as well.

Going strictly from what you described, it sounds like your dentist took some shortcuts. While this is common practice for many dentists that could work out, in your case it obviously didn’t. The reasons that so many dentists take a short cut on these is because there is massive competition in the denture market. If they can save some money in order to lower their prices, it may get them an edge on that competition.

In order to get the best impression, your dentist would want to do a two-step impression. First, is border molding. This would use a heavier impression material which should register the denture border. This is important because the border is what creates the suction you need in order to keep the denture in. It has to press into the tissue a bit to create that suction, so a heavier material is better for that.

The second step is a wash, which is a lighter a impression material used to fill up the interior of the impression. This will register all the soft tissue.

Dentists that try to save time and money will use a medium impression material in order to do both at once. Honestly, much of the time it creates and adequate denture. Obviously not always.

The reline should get a better impression because it will get closer to accurate. Hopefully, your dentist has not already taken that impression. In that case, ask him to do the two step impression and not rely on the medium bodied one step process.

Second, I also want to recommend that you look into facial collapse, which is a consequence of long-term use of removable dentures. As you are making a change anyway, this would be the time to understand all of your options.

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

Will Medical Insurance Pay for Dental Implants?

Posted on February 13, 2025 by writeradmin.

I have pretty bad periodontal disease and have been wearing an upper denture because of how bad my teeth were. I had the denture plate and think I would be better off with implant supported dentures. Is there a chance that my medical insurance would pay for this?

Katie

Dear Katie,

You are not alone in having problems with dentures. Unfortunately, you will not be able to get your medical insurance to pay for this. There are even people without teeth that can’t use dentures because of facial collapse. They literally cannot eat and their medical insurance won’t cover it.

There is a possible temporary solution for your problem with the dental plate. That will give you a chance to save up for dental implants. I would also take this time to deal with your periodontal disease, because until that is dealt with you will not be able to have dental implants anyway.

Screenshot

There’s a new procedure that was developed by a dentist in Great Britain. He realized if the denture plate was slightly curved just beneath the vibrating line it helps some patients with a strong gag reflex do better with the dentures.

Then, once you have healthy gums, you may need to look into your bone structure. Periodontal disease can eat away at your bone. That bone will be necessary in order to keep your dental implants in place. Don’t panic if you do not have enough. In that case, you can have a bone grafting procedure done which will build back up your bone so that you can have the implant overdentures you want.

Focus on healing your gums and saving up, but go ahead and try the procedure with the dental plate to make things more tolerable for yourself.

I hope this helps.
This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

What If Dentures Is All You Can Afford?

Posted on January 20, 2025 by writeradmin.

I have a problem with my teeth, especially my upper teeth. I’ve been losing enamel and most of the teeth have cavities. Many of them need crowns and a few need to be extracted. It may be easier to extract them. Every one is telling me to get dental implants, but I don’t have a lot of money. What if dentures are all I can afford?

Celeste

Dear Celeste,

Everyone is in different circumstances. My first piece of advice to you would be to focus on saving the teeth you can. Natural teeth are far more useful to you than any tooth replacement. If you were losing all of your teeth and they couldn’t be saved I would say that it would be fine to place dentures on the upper teeth. These are held in by suction.

If you were dealing with lower teeth, while you might have to start with dentures, I would strongly suggest that you save up for dental implants. It is much more important on the lower arch. This is because the dentures on a lower arch rest on the ridge of your jawbone. Unfortunately, once your teeth are removed, your body will begin to resorb the minerals in your jawbone to use elsewhere in your body.

While it does this to be efficient with your body’s resources, it has the side effect of slowly shrinking your jawbone. Eventually, there won’t be enough of the ridge there for your dentures to stay in place. In dental circles this is known as facial collapse.

Getting dental implants prevents that. The implants signal to your body that you still have teeth. Because of that, it leaves your jawbone alone. This means that you will no longer have to worry about facial collapse.

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

Can Drinking Soda Lead to Needing Dentures?

Posted on November 25, 2024 by writeradmin.

I drink a lot of soda and now my gums are bleeding. My dentist said it is from the sodas and if I keep it up, I’m going to need dentures. Is this true or is he just trying to scare me?

Christine F.

Dear Christine,

I’m glad you wrote. Just drinking sodas won’t necessarily lead to you needing dentures. It can lead to serious decay and gum disease, which can then lead to losing your teeth. There was a study done that showed if you swallow your soda quickly instead of sipping it and letting it sit your mouth briefly, that you are less likely to develop decay. Of course, this is dependent on your keeping up with your oral hygiene care as well.

The bleeding of your gums has me concerned. This is a sign of gum disease and will lead to bone loss and losing your teeth. Then you will need to replace your teeth.

However, this is likely still preventable. Take the gum disease seriously and get it treated. I’m not sure why your dentist wasn’t giving solutions instead of threats, but there are ways to get your teeth and gums healthy again.

When you are brushing, don’t shy away from the bleeding gums. Get in there and brush them thoroughly. You want to keep bacteria from breeding.

Problems with Dentures

If you do get dentures, make sure they are implant supported dentures or you’ll end up with a host of “quality of life” problems. For instance, even the best fitting dentures will reduce your chewing capacity by 50%. However, the biggest issue you will deal with is facial collapse.

Your body knows when you have teeth roots in your jawbone. Once your teeth are removed, it will immediately begin resorbing the minerals in your jawbone to use elsewhere in your body in order to be efficient with your body’s resources. Unfortunately, this shrinks your jawbone. At first, they will just slip and slide. Then, they’ll periodically fall out. Eventually, you won’t be able to keep them in your mouth at all.

Having dental implants placed to anchor your dentures solves all of these problems. These are sometimes called implant overdentures.

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