How long do dentures take to make? That’s a question that dental professionals hear frequently from patients who have been told that their teeth cannot be saved. Patients who need all their teeth in one jaw or both replaced are anxious to know just how long the  process will take, and most importantly, just how long they’ll have to do without teeth as their dental restoration progresses. The answer to those questions depends largely upon the type of dentures a patient is getting – whether they are conventional ones or any one of the several implant-based options available today.

Conventional Dentures

Having conventional dentures made is a rather long process, typically taking about 6 weeks and 4 to 6 dental appointments from impressions to delivery of the finished denture. Additionally, the process of fabricating and fitting conventional dentures generally doesn’t begin until a patient is completely healed from dental extractions or other preparatory procedures – which means 4 to 6 additional weeks of waiting. All in all, if you’re having conventional dentures made, you can expect to wait around 12 weeks for your new smile.

Implant Supported Permanent Dentures

The length of time it takes to get implant-supported permanent dentures varies according to the type of procedure you’re having done. In traditional, staged dental implant procedures, the wait time can be as long as 6 to 8 months or more between implant placement surgery and the installation of your new teeth. Since replacement teeth cannot be placed until the implants have bonded with the jawbone, fabrication of the permanent denture generally doesn’t begin until that happens, anywhere from 3 to 6 months after implant placement, and typically takes about 30 days to complete. However, patients are given a temporary denture to wear throughout that waiting period, sparing them the inconvenience and embarrassment of spending months without teeth.

With newer surgical techniques, like All-On-Four or Teeth-in-a-Day implant placement, dentures are fabricated before implant placement surgery. These procedures use specialized, immediate-load dental implants, allowing implants to be surgically placed in the jawbone and the prosthetic teeth to be attached in one surgical session. While these procedures require several appointments before surgery for planning and denture fabrication – which will span several weeks –  there is no waiting period for your new teeth. You can walk into your oral surgeon’s office in the morning with bad teeth or no teeth, then leave in the afternoon with a natural-looking and attractive new smile.

Of course, these are just general guidelines on how long it takes to have dentures made. Since each patient is different, the details of dental restoration vary to some extent from one person to another, even when treatment plans are similar. Your own dental care team, who will be familiar with your personal needs and circumstances, can offer more specific details on just how long it will take to complete your new smile.

Contact our office to schedule a dental implant consultation with one of our oral surgeons. Call us at (202) 386-7100.