Unbreakable Flexite Plus® Dentures Flexible dentures created a great deal of excitement when they were first launched. No more ugly metal wires. No more broken dentures. What's more, the denture can be bent or even twisted. It springs right back into its original shape. But the flexible denture fever quickly turned cold. Patients complained of dentures that didn't function (no chewing power) and caused pain whenever they tried to eat anything harder than boiled potatoes. Dentists complained of a material that curls up when trimmed and pressure spots that remain after trimming. A few years ago, I had a debate with a manufacturer of a system of flexible denture material. I argued that basic prosthodontic principles dictate that major connectors of any removable denture cannot be flexible. For a long while, I have been making hybrid acrylic dentures with flexible clasps and rigid plates to take advantage of both systems. However, these dentures were breakable like acrylic dentures and the bond between the two materials was never perfect. I didn't believe that a fully flexible denture will work. True enough, many patients who have done their long-span flexible dentures have a lot of complaints. Finally, one manufacturer recognised the problem and introduced a new partially flexible material. Flexite Plus is now our material of choice for all removable partial dentures. Unlike their predecessors which were flexible throughout and create problems when they are long-span, the new material is selectively flexible and shows rigidity when due. The biggest advantage of this sort of dentures is that unlike the hybrid dentures I used to do, they are unbreakable like the former fully flexible denture systems. Like their fully flexible predecessors, they also do not have the unsightly clasps seens in chrome dentures. Flexite Plus clasps are still pink in colour. Unlike their predecessors, however, Flexite Plus plates are not flexible. This makes them capable of supporting chewing forces in long-span dentures. Another possibility with Flexite Plus is the very tiny sideplate denture. Without the plate covering the entire roof of the mouth, these dentures tend to be more comfortable. Below is another example of a Flexite Plus denture we have done. It is also a sideplate that shows remarkably good retention and stability. It's even pretty functional, but don't push it. It's still a denture. This was only a temporary denture which the patient used while she waited for the implant to integrate. No prosthesis beats an implant restoration in terms of function. The above denture is well-tolerated by this highly adaptable patient. It serves mainly a cosmetic function. The patient treats it like a permanent denture but does not expect to tear tough meat with it. Patients using sideplates must not expect too much in terms of chewing function. Above are 2 dentures belonging to the same patient. On the left is his old acrylic denture with metal clasps. It has also cracked a few times when the patient dropped it. The new denture on the right uses Flexite clasps which are pink in colour. It will also not break when dropped. Cost Estimation S$600-$1000 Beware of cheaper imitations. We use original Flexite Material Please call 62358316 for appointments or email us or Be Our Facebook Fan