Snap-in denture maintenance
Your snap-in denture has a part called a locator insert that needs to be changed out periodically (every 3-6 months). It is what they typically refer to as the male part of your snap-in denture. Your locator inserts are made of nylon and have a tendency to wear over time. In this following picture, the locator insert is on the right side labeled as zero, low, medium, high. The color and degree of strength you want your locator insert to be is dependent on how strong you want your snap-in denture to snap into your mouth and stay in. Obviously the tighter the better and therefore using the High (white) locator insert is best but sometimes people have issues removing it due to manual dexterity of their fingers.
On the left side, you see a stacked view of the locator housing (that is fixated on the underside of the snap-in denture), the insert (which is blue in this case and is fixated in the pink locator housing on the underside of the snap-in denture) and the pink locator abutment (which screws into the implant and is, therefore, sticking out of your gums.
How often your inserts need to be replaced depends on how soon they wear out. The most important factor that influences how soon they wear out is dependent on how well your implants are placed. When placing implants for a snap-in denture, there is little room for error on how they are placed. It is extremely important that the implants be as parallel to one another as possible. See in the below image how the green implants are placed parallel to each other.
If the implants aren’t parallel and are off-angle, the locator insert used would need to be bigger with less retention in order to make the snap-in denture wearable. This is NOT an ideal situation. It is best for the implants to be parallel in order for the snap-in denture to fit tightly. Over time, these locators will become looser due to snapping in and out of your snap-in denture and will need to be replaced. Because there is little room for error, it is important that your surgeon be very skilled at placing dental implants.
That is pretty much all the professional maintenance you would require for your snap-in denture. However please be advised you would need to perform daily maintenance of the prosthesis with a denture cleaner.
