Patent Issued for Method Of Making A Denture (USPTO 10,045,838)

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Health & Medicine Week -- A patent by the inventor Wallace, Lawrence Norman (Carmel Valley, CA), filed on October 23, 2017, was published online on August 27, 2018, according to news reporting originating from Alexandria, Virginia, by NewsRx correspondents (see also Larell Surgical Consultants Inc.).

Patent number 10,045,838 is assigned to Larell Surgical Consultants Inc. (Carmel Valley, California, United States).

The following quote was obtained by the news editors from the background information supplied by the inventors: "Field of the Invention

"The present invention relates to medical devices and, more specifically to dentures and a method for fabricating a denture in one visit.

"Description of the Related Art

"Many patients require dentures but do not have easy access to dental care, either because of monetary limitations or geographical limitations. Many patients are older and live in nursing homes or assisted living facilities, making it difficult for those patients to go to the dentist's office once, let alone visit the office four to five times as required for conventional dentures. Additionally, conventional dentures are expensive and not fully covered by insurance and not covered at all by Medicare. Nonetheless, functional dentures are important in maintaining general health, decreasing the incidence of chronic disease, lowering overall medical costs while offering a higher quality of life and sense of self-esteem.

"Missing teeth have a variety of implications, including impairment of mastication, speech defects, swallowing disorders, nutrition intake, distorted facial contour, and overall physical and emotional discomfort. Headaches and other illnesses are often related to missing teeth. Replacement of missing teeth is therefore a necessity that is significant to emotional and physical health and well being.

"Conventional dentures are fabricated in dental offices and typically require four to five visits by the patient. During the first visit at the dentist's office, a preliminary impression is taken to make a custom mold of the mouth. That mold may be sent to the laboratory to make custom impression trays. During the second visit to the dentist, the custom impression trays are checked and adjusted and the dentist also takes final impressions. The corresponding laboratory procedures involve creating a cast master mold, a stabilized based plate, and a wax occlusal rim. During the third visit to the dentist, the dentist determines the maxilio-mandibular relation, selects the teeth for the denture, and takes a bite registration. The corresponding laboratory work involves setting the anterior and posterior teeth, thus completing a wax denture for the patient to try. During the fourth visit to the dentist, the dentist checks the aesthetics and functionality of the wax up dentures, checks the occlusal and vertical dimension, and makes any required corrections. The dentures are sent to the lab to be processed and finished. The fifth visit to the dentist involves the delivery of the dentures, a final check for fit and then, finally, the dentures are given to the patient for home use.

"One article suggests that the process of fabricating a denture can be accomplished in three appointments. This procedure is described in the article entitled The Three Appointment Denture Technique as Presented by Robert H. Griffiths, D.D.S. and Don Kaylor, C.D.T., printed by the Council on Prosthetic Services and Dental Laboratory Relations in May 1979, in a pamphlet entitled Compilation of Reduced Fee Denture Techniques. In the first, 45 minute appointment, the dentist conducts an examination of the patient which involves examining the tissue and structures, taking a panoramic radiograph, discussing patient history, selecting impression trays, taking facial measurements, determining the tentative vertical and centric relationship, and selecting the teeth and teeth shades. Stabilized base plates should then be received from the lab so that a wax-up can occur. During the second, 20 minute appointment, a preliminary fit analysis of the wax setup occurs and necessary adjustments are made. Between the second and third appointments, the lab must complete the final set of dentures. The third, 20 minute appointment, involves checking the final set of dentures and instructing the patient on how to use the dentures.

"Most notably, the proposed three visit procedure only results in a cost saving when the dentist office is able to work closely with the dental laboratory. Additionally, the procedure still requires making a wax model for the first try-in. Making a wax setup requires a significant amount of time and expense.

"Sekendur, U.S. Pat. No. 6,079,981, discloses a method for making a customized denture from standard sized segments of prefabricated prosthetic teeth which may be joined and adjusted to fit an individual's mouth. Each prosthetic tooth is bonded to a prosthetic gum segment. The gum segments of each prosthetic tooth are joined to form the gum line. The prosthetic teeth are first selected and then evaluated in the patient's mouth by the dentist, conformed in the mouth or on a model of the mouth to form the denture, and finally cured to form the finished denture.

"Saitoh, et. al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,304,062, discloses a prosthetic denture precursor and a method for making the same. The prosthetic denture precursor comprises at least one artificial tooth and a photopolymerizable denture base material which holds the root portion of the artificial tooth. The method of making the prosthetic denture precursor does not require making a wax denture, as the photopolymerizable denture base can be deformed prior to exposure to light. After the tooth is adjusted to a dentally operative position, the base is irreversibly hardened by exposure to light.

"Hazar, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,583,947, discloses a custom denture and method for making the same. A standard-sized base is selected and fitted with artificial teeth. The teeth are fit into the base and secured by a Li-shaped appliance which stabilizes the teeth in their relative positions in the sockets. To determine the appropriate standard base size to select, the dentist takes an impression of the patient's oral cavity. From the impression, upper and lower models are cast, allowing the dentist to select the most appropriate standard-sized base. The bases are then conformed to the surface contours using the casted models and finally, the artificial teeth are secured.

"Other methods of making custom dentures have failed to fully address the issue of being able to produce the dental device in a single visit and doing so at a reduced cost, such as may be at the level of Medicaid reimbursement. Thus, patients who do not have easy access to a dental office and those who cannot afford the procedure are precluded from dental treatment which is necessary for physical and emotional health. Furthermore, many dentists choose not to make dentures because the process requiring multiple visits is not profitable. Other methods also require the use of an off-site dental laboratory, adding to time and cost.

"It would therefore be desirable to provide a custom denture that overcomes the shortcomings and limitations of conventional dentures and the conventional methods for making dentures"

In addition to the background information obtained for this patent, NewsRx journalists also obtained the inventor's summary information for this patent: "To address these and other needs, and in view of its purposes, one aspect of the present invention provides a pre-formed denture template with teeth in place, and which requires only one step and only one sitting, to be made into a finalized, customized denture. The sitting may be a visit to a dental office according to one exemplary embodiment.

"According to one aspect, the invention provides a method for forming a denture for a patient in a single dental office visit. The method comprises providing a plurality of denture templates having different sizes, each having been pre-formed to a pre-formed shape and comprising a base acrylic portion with prosthetic teeth adjoined thereto, selecting a first dental template of the plurality of dental templates that has a size generally corresponding to a size of the patient's edentulous alveolar ridge but does not fit conformably, i.e., exactly thereto. The method further comprises adding an impression material which may be a reline or other viscous material, to the first dental template and positioning the first dental template on the patient's edentulous alveolar ridge to mold the impression material to conform to the contours of the patient's edentulous alveolar ridge and vestibule. The method further comprises allowing the impression material to solidify to produce a customized, rigid or semi-rigid molded portion thereby forming a denture comprised of the prosthetic teeth, the base acrylic portion and the solidified molded portion which includes a custom lining. The steps of selecting, adding, positioning and allowing may advantageously take place in one visit.

"According to another aspect, the present invention provides a denture formed according to such method and including two acrylic sections. A template is formed of a first acrylic portion and includes teeth coupled directly to the first acrylic portion. A second acrylic portion is conterminous with the first acrylic portion and conforms to a patient's edentulous alveolar ridge and may be rigid or semi-rigid.

"According to another aspect, the invention provides a denture comprising teeth and a denture base consisting of two acrylic portions including a template fainted of a first acrylic portion and coupled directly to the teeth and a second acrylic portion adjacent and conterminous with the first acrylic portion and being conformed to a patient's edentulous alveolar ridge."

The claims supplied by the inventors are:

"What is claimed is:

"1. A method of producing a denture, said method comprising: selecting for a patient having at least one edentulous alveolar ridge a pre-formed denture template from a plurality of pre-formed denture templates, wherein the plurality of pre-formed denture templates comprises pre-formed denture templates of at least two different sizes, wherein each pre-formed denture template of the plurality of pre-formed denture templates comprises: a base portion comprising a u-shaped trough generally in the shape of an alveolar ridge and being configured to accept the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge into the u-shaped trough, wherein the base portion is formed out of a first material; and prosthetic teeth attached to the base portion; wherein the pre-formed denture template is selected from the pre-formed denture templates of at least two different sizes to generally correspond to a size of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; placing a viscous second material inside the u-shaped trough, wherein the viscous second material placed inside the u-shaped trough is the same material as the first material out of which the base portion is formed; positioning the u-shaped trough containing the viscous second material over the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; seating the pre-formed denture template on the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge such that the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge is pressed into the viscous second material contained within the u-shaped trough thereby conforming a portion of the viscous second material contained within the u-shaped trough to the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; and allowing the viscous second material to irreversibly solidify; measuring at least one dimension of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge to obtain at least one measurement of the at least one dimension, wherein the step of selecting the pre-formed denture template from the plurality of pre-formed denture templates is responsive to the at least one of the measurements, wherein the at least one measurement comprises an inter-ridge distance defined as a distance between a center of a right posterior portion of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge of the patient and a center of a left posterior portion of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge of the patient, wherein the pre-formed denture template has an inter-molar distance defined as a distance between a posterior prosthetic tooth of the prosthetic teeth on one side of the base portion and a corresponding posterior prosthetic tooth of the prosthetic teeth on the opposite side of the base portion, and wherein the pre-formed denture template is selected from the plurality of pre-formed denture templates so as to minimize a difference between the inter-ridge distance and the inter-molar distance.

"2. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the method is performed in a single visit.

"3. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the plurality of pre-formed denture templates comprises pre-formed denture templates of at least five different sizes.

"4. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the second material is placed in the u-shaped trough so that it directly contacts the first material.

"5. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the second material solidifies into a rigid layer directly contacting the first material of the base portion.

"6. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the second material solidifies into a semi-rigid layer directly contacting the first material of the base portion.

"7. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein seating the pre-formed denture template on the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge comprises applying pressure to at least one of an outer surface of the base portion and the prosthetic teeth attached to the base portion.

"8. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the pre-formed denture template comprises at least one of a maxillary pre-formed denture template configured to conform to at least one maxillary structure of the patient comprising at least a palatal vault, and a mandibular pre-formed denture template configured to conform to at least one mandibular structure of the patient comprising at least a lingual space.

"9. The method of producing a denture of claim 8, wherein the denture produced comprises a maxillary denture, the method further comprising producing a mandibular denture, wherein the maxillary denture is used to align the mandibular denture within a mouth of the patient during at least one step of producing the mandibular denture.

"10. The method of producing a denture of claim 1, wherein the pre-formed denture template is selected from the plurality of pre-formed denture templates so as to minimize a volume between an inner surface of the u-shaped trough and the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge.

"11. A method of producing a denture, said method comprising: selecting for a patient having at least one edentulous alveolar ridge a pre-formed denture template from a plurality of pre-formed denture templates, wherein the plurality of pre-formed denture templates comprises pre-formed denture templates of at least two different sizes, wherein each pre-formed denture template of the plurality of pre-formed denture templates comprises: a base portion comprising a u-shaped trough generally in the shape of an alveolar ridge and being configured to at least partially accept one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge into the u-shaped trough, wherein the base portion is formed out of a first material; and prosthetic teeth attached to the base portion; wherein the pre-formed denture template is selected from the pre-formed denture templates of at least two different sizes to generally correspond to a size of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; placing a second material inside the u-shaped trough, wherein the second material placed inside the u-shaped trough; positioning the u-shaped trough containing the second material over the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; seating the pre-formed denture template on the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge such that the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge is pressed into the second material contained within the u-shaped trough thereby conforming a portion of the second material contained within the u-shaped trough to the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; and allowing the second material to irreversibly solidify into a rigid negative of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge; measuring at least one dimension of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge to obtain at least one measurement of the at least one dimension, wherein the step of selecting the pre-formed denture template from the plurality of pre-formed denture templates is responsive to the at least one of the measurements, wherein the at least one measurement comprises an inter-ridge distance defined as a distance between a center of a right posterior portion of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge of the patient and a center of a left posterior portion of the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge of the patient, wherein the pre-formed denture template has an inter-molar distance defined as a distance between a posterior prosthetic tooth of the prosthetic teeth on one side of the base portion and a corresponding posterior prosthetic tooth of the prosthetic teeth on the opposite side of the base portion, and wherein the pre-formed denture template is selected from the plurality of pre-formed denture templates so as to minimize a difference between the inter-ridge distance and the inter-molar distance.

"12. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein the method is performed in a single visit.

"13. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein the plurality of pre-formed denture templates comprises pre-formed denture templates of at least five different sizes.

"14. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein the second material is placed in the u-shaped trough so that it directly contacts the first material.

"15. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein the second material solidifies into a rigid layer directly contacting the first material of the base portion.

"16. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein seating the pre-formed denture template on the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge comprises applying pressure to at least one of an outer surface of the base portion and the prosthetic teeth attached to the base portion.

"17. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein the pre-formed denture template comprises at least one of a maxillary pre-formed denture template configured to conform to at least one maxillary structure of the patient comprising at least a palatal vault, and a mandibular pre-formed denture template configured to conform to at least one mandibular structure of the patient comprising at least a lingual space.

"18. The method of producing a denture of claim 17, wherein the denture produced comprises a maxillary denture, the method further comprising producing a mandibular denture, wherein the maxillary denture is used to align the mandibular denture within a mouth of the patient during at least one step of producing the mandibular denture.

"19. The method of producing a denture of claim 11, wherein the pre-formed denture template is selected from the plurality of pre-formed denture templates so as to minimize a volume between an inner surface of the u-shaped trough and the one edentulous alveolar ridge of the at least one edentulous alveolar ridge."

URL and more information on this patent, see: Wallace, Lawrence Norman. Method Of Making A Denture. U.S. Patent Number 10,045,838, filed October 23, 2017, and published online on August 27, 2018. Patent URL: http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=10,045,838.PN.&OS=PN/10,045,838RS=PN/10,045,838

Keywords for this news article include: Business, Dentistry, California, Carmel Valley, United States, Health and Medicine, North and Central America, Larell Surgical Consultants Inc..

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