Clinical Evaluation Parameters of Tooth-Supported Overdenture Treatment

Abstract

A detailed assessment should be made of the patient’s medical anamnesis. Systemic and local complications should be evaluated. Medical anamnesis is followed by dental anamnesis. Some questions are used to learn about the dental history of the patient. The patient should be informed about the treatment initially after doing necessary planning by reviewing current diagnostic casts, radiographic illustrations, and photos. The patient’s current denture and expectations from the new denture should be evaluated. It should be investigated if the patient had a systemic or local disease by using clinical and radiologic examination methods. The present teeth, roots, alveolar crests, and soft tissues in the mouth should be evaluated. All these examinations will help the dentist for planning the treatment. The patient’s oral hygiene should be raised to the optimal level before starting the treatment, and the patient should be informed about how to maintain it. The two most important considerations when selecting attachments to fit a particular oral cavity are the amount of periodontal support for the abutments and the condition of the non-abutment supportive structures (residual ridge, buccal tuberosities, etc.). Clinicians should consider the number of abutments when evaluating the oral cavity and suggest their influence on attachment selection. Though the considerations will sometimes point unanimously to a specific design, more often the study casts will offer conflicting indications. These require judgment, and that is why case design can never be a purely mechanical operation. Nevertheless, the study model will usually fit clinicians’ categorized attachments close enough to permit relatively easy selection. It should be noted that the attachment would be selected according to the height of the vertical dimension and width of the crests.