Abstract
Purpose: This is a case series report with up to five-year follow-up of preservation of remaining teeth used as retentive attachments to support an overdenture. Case Description: A valuable treatment to achieve immediate retention and stability was performed by using the patient’s remaining teeth with root-retained attachments combined with an overdenture. All overdentures were considered successful at the 5-year follow-up. Conclusion: Within the limitations of this case series, the use of short-coping and ball attachments to improve the retention and stability of overdentures is recommended. This treatment option is usually related to limited financial resources or to any health restraint.
Highlights
The use of natural teeth as overdenture abutments has become a realistic alternative to the extraction of remaining teeth over the past decades [1,2]
Mechanical retainers may be used on a substructure; another option is the coverage of remaining roots with metal, which are known as telescopic crowns, short-coping, long-coping, or attachment depending on the type of root coverage
Four elderly patients (3 men e 1 woman, mean age 66) who searched for treatment in the Meridional Study Centre, Uningá, Brazil, with an edentulous span and remaining teeth able to support an overdenture were selected to receive treatment with overdenture
Summary
The use of natural teeth as overdenture abutments has become a realistic alternative to the extraction of remaining teeth over the past decades [1,2]. Overdentures support and/ or retention are obtained using one or more teeth or roots, which are located above the denture’s basal surface [3]. The remaining teeth height will be determined by the analysis of the vertical dimension and teeth’s vertical bone height [3,4]. Comparing various treatments within each other, implants may be described as the first choice in well selected patients [5,6], while it can be considered an aesthetic longterm treatment for elderly patients [7,8] and is not indicated for individuals with poor general health status. It is important to highlight that in some cases, implant therapy cannot be performed immediately, requiring a temporary measure to replace the tooth until the healing process occurs (or implant’s placement)
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