Care
Daily care for your restorations
Good care for a denture or implant comes down to simple actions repeated every day. Below is a general routine that helps you not miss anything. It does not replace your dentist's instructions: if your dentist told you to do something differently, follow their advice.
The most useful thing you can do for a denture needs no special skills and no special products. All it takes is regularity and a little patience in front of the mirror.
What to have ready
- A soft toothbrush for yourself and, if your dentist advised it, a separate brush for a removable denture
- The interdental cleaning tools your dentist chose for you
- A lidded container for storing the denture
- A towel to lay in the sink
- A well-lit mirror
- The leaflet or notes from your last appointment
Clean your teeth and fixed restorations twice a day
Morning and evening, gently clean your own teeth, crowns and bridges, paying attention to where they meet the gum. Keep your movements light: pressing hard does not clean any better.
A simple example: someone notices they always rush the brush over their back teeth, so they start cleaning those first, before they get tired.
Clean between teeth and under the bridge
A toothbrush cannot reach the spaces between teeth or under the middle part of a bridge. For these areas, use the interdental tools your dentist recommended, in the way they showed you.
A simple example: after an appointment, a reader keeps the interdental tools next to their toothbrush so they don't forget them in the evening.
Don't forget the crown on your implant
Plaque builds up around an implant just as it does around natural teeth. Clean this area every day and don't skip it, even if nothing there is bothering you.
A simple example: someone brushes around the crown on their implant as a separate step, as if it were the most important tooth in their mouth.
Take out and clean a removable denture every day
Remove the denture and clean it on all sides over a sink with some water in it or a towel laid in it. Choose the cleaning product and method according to your dentist's instructions, not friends' tips.
A simple example: a folded towel lies at the edge of the sink, so a denture that slips lands on something soft.
Look after the gums and tissue under the denture
While the denture is out, gently clean your gums, palate and tongue as your dentist advised. This freshens your mouth and lets you notice any redness or sore spot.
A simple example: during the evening clean, a reader sees a small red patch on the gum and writes down exactly where it is.
Store the denture as your dentist told you
Whether to take the denture out at night and how to keep it is decided by your dentist. Keep the container in the same place every time, out of reach of children and pets.
A simple example: the denture container always sits on the same bathroom shelf, so there is no hunting for it in the morning.
Check yourself in the mirror
Every few days, calmly look at your gums and restorations in good light. Note anything unusual: swelling, sore spots, chips, or a change in the colour of the gum.
A simple example: someone notices a small chip on the edge of their denture and puts it in its container until the appointment, without trying to smooth it down themselves.
Go to your routine check-ups
How often you have check-ups is decided by your dentist. Bring notes about anything that has worried you, so the conversation at the appointment is more focused.
A simple example: before the visit, a reader rereads their short notes and remembers having twice noticed bleeding around the same tooth.
Best avoided
- Filing down, bending or gluing a denture yourself
- Skipping cleaning around an implant because it doesn't hurt
- Cleaning a denture over an empty, hard sink
- Swapping your dentist's instructions for tips from adverts or friends
- Putting off a visit when the denture rubs or has become loose
- Brushing more gently when your gums bleed instead of telling your dentist
If something isn't working
- If weak hands make it hard to hold a toothbrush, ask your dentist which aids could make cleaning easier.
- If you forget your evening routine, link it to another daily habit, such as an evening cup of tea or the news.
- If you can't see well in the mirror, add more light or ask someone close to you to help with the check.
- If an older relative feels awkward about help with their denture, agree on a calm time for it and go gently, without hurrying.
Check you have covered everything
- You clean your teeth and fixed restorations morning and evening
- Gaps between teeth and the area under the bridge are cleaned with the tools your dentist chose
- The crown on your implant gets as much attention as your natural teeth
- Your removable denture is cleaned every day over a protected sink
- You know how to store your denture and keep it in one place
- You remember or have written down the date of your next check-up
Situation, what to notice, what to do
| Situation | What to look out for | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| New removable denture | Rubbing, sore spots, difficulty speaking | Don't adjust it yourself; tell your dentist at the follow-up visit |
| Bridge on neighbouring teeth | Plaque under the middle part | Clean this area with the tools your dentist showed you |
| Crown on an implant | Redness or bleeding of the gum around it | Keep cleaning gently and tell your dentist |
| Chipped or cracked denture | Sharp edges, change in fit | Don't wear it if it scratches, and see your dentist |
| Travel or a hospital stay | No usual place to store the denture | Take the container and care items, and tell staff about the denture |
Related sections
- Topics
Topics by group: fixed restorations, removable dentures, implants, gums and natural teeth. The article catalogue is here too.
- Approaches
What your dentist does and what is up to you, plus the signs that mean a visit should not be put off.
- Ask your dentist
Questions for your dentist before treatment, after a restoration is fitted and about everyday care.
- Glossary
Plain explanations of words such as crown, bridge, inlay, cast partial denture, abutment and mucositis.
What we rely on
- Advice from your dentist and the instructions for your specific restoration
- WHO materials on oral health (general principles)
This page brings together generally accepted information about caring for dental restorations as it stood when the page was prepared. Details are refined over time, and how to care for your own denture or implant is decided by the dentist who fitted it or who looks after it.