Dentures for pensioners at a Bulgarian dental faculty: are they free, and how a denture is made

Are dentures free for pensioners at the faculty?

No. At the faculty the examination is free: the student looks at the state of your jaw and tells you what may be needed. The denture itself is paid for at the faculty's fee, and you learn what it will cost on site before work starts.

Can you get a denture through NZOK at the faculty?

No. Treatment by a student at the faculty does not go through NZOK, Bulgaria's health fund. The faculty sets and collects the fee for it, and only the examination is free.

Full or partial denture

A full, or complete, denture is for a jaw with no teeth of its own left. A partial denture is made when the jaw still has some teeth, and it is held by them, so their condition is checked first.

When only one or two teeth are left, a partial denture may turn out to suit you better, or the tooth may need to come out first. Which denture may be indicated for you is decided after an examination and an X-ray, and a teacher approves the plan.

How a denture is made at the faculty, and how many visits it takes

A dental student makes your denture, and a teacher from the department follows and approves each stage of the work.

A full denture is made over separate visits for impressions, a try-in and fitting, each carrying on from the result of the one before. It usually takes about 5 visits, and adjustments after fitting are almost always needed and are an ordinary part of the treatment.

A partial denture is also made from impressions and fitted over several visits. The remaining teeth are sometimes prepared first so they can take the load, and while you get used to a removable denture, one or two more visits for adjustments are usual.

Between visits the denture is made in a laboratory, and that time cannot be shortened. Visits are on weekdays, to the student's timetable at the faculty, and usually take longer than at a private practice. The student will tell you after the examination how many visits you will need.

Sometimes other procedures are needed before the denture, such as removing a tooth that cannot be saved or treating the gums. They count as separate cases and extend the overall timeline.

What a denture costs at the faculty

The examination at the faculty is free. For the treatment you pay a nominal fee that the faculty sets and collects, not UniDent. Ask on site what the whole denture will cost and confirm the amount before work starts.

Treatment at the faculty costs a fraction of what private practice charges. You will have to come more times, though, and each visit is usually longer.

If you need a crown or a bridge

A crown goes on a badly damaged tooth of your own, and a bridge fills the gap left by one or two missing teeth by fixing to the teeth on either side. Both are made in a dental laboratory once the tooth has been prepared and impressions taken. That time cannot be shortened and does not depend on the student or the teacher, so weeks pass between visits and the whole case often takes months.

1. 1Examination, X-rays and a treatment plan approved by a supervising teacher.
2. 2Preparing the tooth and taking impressions.
3. 3Manufacture in a dental laboratory.
4. 4Try-in, adjustments and fitting.

A root canal on the same tooth is sometimes needed before the crown, which counts as a separate case and extends the timeline.

FAQ

Who makes the denture at the faculty?

A dental student, while a teacher from the department follows and approves each stage, from the treatment plan to the fitting.

I have one or two teeth left in the jaw. Can I send a request?

Yes. Whether a partial denture may be indicated for you, or removing the tooth first and then a full denture, is decided after an examination and an X-ray, and the faculty decides whether the case can be accepted.

Start with a free examination at the faculty

The request is short and needs no account: say that you need a denture or that your old one no longer fits, which days you can come, and your name and phone number. If a student can take the case, they call you and the two of you agree a time, and only the student who took the request sees your number.