Nursing & Healthcare Programs

Caring for a Patient’s Dentures

Written by Amanda R. McDaniel, MS, BSN, RN
Amanda is a BSN/RN with a MS in Physiology and a BA in English. She worked as a medical writer in the pharmaceutical industry for 11 years before pursuing a career in nursing. She now works as a nurse on a NeuroTelemetry unit and continues to write and edit on a freelance basis. Amanda’s LinkedIn

For patients with dentures, care of the dentures is just as important as brushing natural teeth. Good denture hygiene and fit helps prevent oral irritation and infection.

Providing Denture Care

  1. Gather your equipment.
    • Gloves
    • Soft-bristled toothbrush
    • Toothpaste (regular or denture specific)
    • Denture adhesive
    • Emesis basin
    • 4×4 inch gauze
    • Denture cup
  2. Introduce yourself to the patient, perform hand hygiene, and put on gloves. Close the door or draw the curtain to ensure patient privacy.
  3. Ask the patient what they feel comfortable doing and what they would like assistance with. Also ask if they feel their dentures fit properly and if they are having any oral pain or tenderness. Allow them to do as much as possible independently.
  4. Fill the emesis basin with room-temperature water.
  5. Ask the patient to remove their dentures.
    • If the patient needs assistance, wrap your thumb and index finger in gauze. Grasp the front of upper plate and pull downward then out. Lift the lower plate up then out. You may need to twist the plates a bit to the side to comfortably remove them from the patient’s mouth.
  6. Place the dentures in the water in the emesis basin.
  7. Apply denture cleaner or toothpaste to the toothbrush.
  8. Brush the teeth of the dentures just as you would natural teeth; with up-and-down motions on the front and back surfaces and back-and-forth motions on the bite surfaces. Use a back-and-forth motion to clean the palate and inner surfaces of the dentures.
    • Be sure to hold the dentures close to the surface of the water so that you or the patient does not get the unexpected and unpleasant surprise of being äóìsprayedäó by the motion of the toothbrush.
    • Note if there are any sharp edges or cracked or broken areas of the dentures.
  9. Rinse the dentures thoroughly with clean, room-temperature water. Water that is too hot or cold can damage the dentures.
  10. Ask the patient if they would like to re-insert their dentures or store the dentures for a later time.
    • If they elect to store their dentures, place the dentures in a denture cup and cover with room-temperature water.
    • Make sure that the cup is labeled with the patient’s name.
  11. Ask the patient if they use denture adhesive. If they do, apply a thin layer to the undersurface of the denture.
  12. Moisten the dentures and press firmly into place. Watch the patient for signs of discomfort and ask if the dentures feel seated correctly.
  13. Dispose of the water in the emesis basin. Clean the toothbrush and store the supplies in the appropriate location.
  14. Remove gloves and perform hand hygiene.
  15. Record the hygiene procedure per institutional or unit policy. Report any patient complaints of pain or tenderness, or defects in the dentures to the nurse per policy.

Amanda R. McDaniel, MS, BSN, RN

References

Hygiene. (2014). In A. G. Perry, P. A. Potter, and W. R. Ostendorf (Eds), Clinical nursing skills & techniques (8th ed., pp. 410). St. Louis, MO: Mosby Elsevier.

More Resources

Putting on Personal Protective Equipment

Personal protective equipment is worn to protect the mouth, nose, eyes, clothing, and skin from unwanted pathogens. In the health care setting, a patient’s condition often prompts the use of personal protective equipment; however, a health care worker is able to wear personal protective equipment whenever he or she deems it is necessary (e.g., during procedures with the potential for excessive contact with bodily fluids).

Feeding the Patient

Not all patients will need help feeding themselves. Some patients will only need assistance opening cartons or cutting their food. To promote independence, always let the patient do as much as he or she can before assisting. It is vitally important that the nurse’s aide verifies that the patient receives the correct meal tray. Patients may have special diets that play a critical role in their health (i.e., pureed diet, gluten-free diet, food allergies, etc.). Feeding the wrong food to the wrong patient could result in serious complications.

Measuring the Apical Pulse

The apical pulse rate is the most accurate non-invasive measurement of heart rate because it is measured directly over the apex of the heart. Apical pulse is preferred in cases when the radial pulse is difficult to palpate, when the pulse is irregular, greater than 100 beats per minute, or less than 60 beats per minute when measured by other means (electronic, radial, etc.).

Making an Occupied Bed

If a patient is bedridden or on bedrest, the bed linens will need to be changed while the patient is in the bed. For safety reasons, the nurse’s aid should avoid making an occupied bed if the patient is able to get out of bed. Bed linens should be changed according to the facility’s policy or anytime they are wet or soiled.

Removing Personal Protective Equipment

It is important to follow the correct procedure while removing personal protective equipment to avoid contaminating your skin or clothing. The most common source of contamination in this process stems from improper removal of gloves. Gloves are often the most soiled piece of equipment. To avoid contaminating your skin or the other equipment worn, gloves should always be removed first. Then remove the goggles, gown, and mask, in that order.

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