Prosthodontics

Prosthodontics is an area of dentistry dealing with restoration of normal function and structure of the whole stomatognathic system (oral cavity with teeth, temporomandibular joints, muscles and nerves).When procedures of conservative dentistry are not enough to meet functional or aesthetic needs of the patient, here comes prosthodontics.

Prosthodontics involves the use of removable or fixed restorations. The choice of an adequate restoration will certainly determine patient’s comfort and quality of life.

Fixed restorations are those which are in a way “attached” to the patient’s own teeth and may not be removed by the patient, only at the dentist’s office. Fixed restorations include: crown-and-root inlays, veneers, crowns, bridges, and restorations based on (endosseous) implants.

 Crowns and bridges may be mounted on the implants. Always when it is possible to use such restorations, we recommend them as first choice, due to their high comfort of use. They do not normally require any special activity of the patient, they are not to be removed at night and they perfectly imitate natural dentition, often being almost unnoticeable.

 

Removable restorations, as the name indicates, are those which must be regularly removed by the patient from the oral cavity, especially for the night, to ensure ‘rest’ of the mucosa. This solution is used when tooth deficits are so extensive that we may not offer a fixed restoration or for financial reasons (removable restorations often allow for cost reduction).

Removable restorations include acrylic or frame prosthesis, and special prosthesis supported on the other teeth or implants called overdenture.

Thanks to the presence of a dental technician at our office, we may offer express works. Obviously, this is normally not a single-visit procedure, but the time of waiting for a specific restoration is much shorter. 

This way, the discomfort related to e.g. tooth stripping (before the preparation of crowns or veneers), toothlessness or cavity formed by extraction (tooth removal) is limited. If the patient is not interested in express work, it is possible to use temporary restorations which enable everyday functioning of the patient until completion of the final prosthetic work.