Question by Windmaker: Should upper denture roof plate be flush with the roof of my mouth?
I just today received a partial upper denture….a first for me (four successive teeth on one side, and three intermittent teeth on the other side). While it seems snug so far, my concern is about the fact that the metal plate that is in the roof of my mouth is not making contact with the flesh. I immediately mentioned this to the dentist, but he didn’t seem to be giving me a straight answer about this matter. This “roof” section of the denture covers approximately a third of the roof (when you consider that the back edge has somewhat of a horse shoe shape with the outside portions go farther back than the center portion), and no matter how hard I bite down, most of the plate does not touch, or is not flush, with the roof of my mouth. It feels like I could easily insert a paper clip underneath it, and I’ve already learned that it traps food each time I eat. I can certainly feel (with my tongue) the entire (somewhat sharp) back edge of this plate is protruding from one side of my mouth to the other.

Is there someone with denture knowledge who could comment on whether this protrusion of the roof plate away from the roof of my mouth is a proper fit?….or are they customarily designed to be flush against the roof?. The imprint on the metal certainly appears to be that of the surface of my roof when the mold was taken, so I find it hard to believe it’s supposed to be suspended as far as it is away from being flush and in contact with the roof of my mouth.

I would appreciate hearing any comments from those of you who feel qualified and informed about this matter (before I return to the dentist for another adjustment…he said probably in a week or so it’ll need some tightening again), Thus far I have not been successful in locating any information about this specific issue on the Internet…but I will keep trying.

Best answer:

Answer by Robert
Yes, the metal palate portion of your partial should be in contact with the soft tissue of your palate. There is even a little bead line or ridge scribed on the model before casting to ensure this seals off to prevent a food trap. If you will look at the inside of your metal partial you will see the slight raised bead running the entire length of the edge. This raised edge should be in intimate contact with soft tissue.

This is caused by a distorted impression or a distorted casting. The only proper solution is to reimpress and recast. If you will go back the dentist and tell them you gave it a week or so to see if the soft tissue would seal off with the edge of the partial and it still has not. Tell them you are having to clean trapped food from underneath and they will know what the problem is. How they want to handle the problem will be telling. If they want to place a “reline” material inside the partial to fill in the space you will have continued maintenance on that area for the life of the partial due to leakage at the edges and delamination of the material over timel. Make them promise in writing they will correct any future leakage or other problems at no charge for the life of the partial. A new impression and casting is the correct way to approach this problem.

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