By Bud Stephens
Dental patients seek regular professional dental care for a variety of reasons. For some it is merely a matter of cosmetics. They simply want a prettier smile. Some realize the health advantages of good oral hygiene and seek to improve their dental health so that their high quality of life is maintained for as long as possible. Others just want to avoid the pain that toothaches bring.
However, there are times when we are not in a financial position to obtain the quality dental healthcare that we would like, especially when it comes to procedures where natural teeth are replaced by artificial teeth. At this point, many people choose dentures rather than enduring years of expensive dental procedures. Even so, dentures come with some disadvantages over some other procedures such as dental implants. Luckily, all those limitations need not be the case.
After years of helping underserved residents of our area receive quality dental care at Family Health Centers of SWFL, Doctors Martin and Shelane Jenkins, (DDS) opened “Affordable Dental Care”, offering general and specialized dentistry to the uninsured or underinsured. The Jenkins’ offer their services at a lower cost than most other dentists and have seen tremendous response from the SWFL community.
Many patients come to them believing that conventional dentures are the only option. Patients feel that having their existing teeth repaired or replaced by expensive dental implants is not an option. After a great deal of research, the Jenkins discovered that their are cost effective alternatives to conventional dentures. A major complaint heard from those who have dentures is that they are difficult to keep in place, requiring the wearer to keep denture adhesive on hand. Even then, denture wearers experience slippage and movement that can cause pain and present some embarrassing situations. Doctor Martin Jenkins shares, “I had a patient who came to us for help because they could no longer sing. It seems that singing caused their dentures to detach at precisely the wrong moment.” Dr. Jenkins added that there are other limitations to conventional dentures such as the tremendous limitations on the kinds of food denture wearers can eat.
According to Dr. Shelane Jenkins, loose dentures are not a requirement for denture wearers. She states, “Those who wear dentures need not be extremely limited in the foods they can eat or in the activities in which they participate. There is a better way. ‘Mini Dental Implants’, sometimes called ‘Small Diameter Implants’ could be the answer.”
She explained that “Mini Dental Implants” are about half the cost of traditional implants, are less invasive, require shorter healing time and less visits to the dental office. A person receiving this treatment can enjoy the foods they choose without having to carry a tube of dental paste with them. With the mini implants, several small metal posts are attached to the bone under the gums. Immediately, new dentures are placed to accept the posts. The dentures simply “snap” into place where they are held firmly in place by the posts. Dr, Jenkins says, “After the implants there is no more slippage, no movement. Even the upper palate is exposed so that the patient can really taste their favorite foods again.”
Dr. Martin Jenkins ended by saying, “We have done our best to eliminate cost as a reason for not getting the dental care that people need and deserve. We hope that our residents will give us the opportunity to show them a better way to good oral health.”
Affordable Dental Care is located at 5705 Lee Blvd, Unit 13 in Fort Myers, FL 33971 and can be reached for appointments by calling (239) 337-0391. They can be found on the web at www.AffordableDentalcareS.com and they invite you to call for a free consultation for your dental implant options.
