The Comparative Use of Different Occlusal Indicators And Occlusal Adjustment In Full-Mouth Rehabilitation
Melek Nihan Özkan
Gazi University Dentistry
Introduction
In all intraoral restorations, occlusion must be considered for long-term biological and mechanical success. It is important to achieve an occlusion where occlusal loads are evenly distributed on all teeth, implants, and restorations. Instruments used to identify early occlusal contacts are called occlusal indicators. Occlusal indicators are divided into qualitative and quantitative methods. In qualitative methods, only the locations of occlusal contact points can be determined. Articulation papers and foils are qualitative indicators. In quantitative methods, however, the timing and intensity of contact points can be determined. T-Scan, a computerized occlusal analysis system, is an example of quantitative occlusal indicators.
Case Description
A 36-year-old male patient presented to our clinic with extensive tooth loss and had 6 implants placed in his maxilla. After obtaining periapical radiographs and conducting a dental examination, it was decided to perform a full-mouth rehabilitation. Porcelain fused metal was used as the restorative material. Due to the presence of maxillary right and left canine teeth, the occlusion type to be applied was determined as canine-protected occlusion. After determining the occlusal contact points of the full-mouth rehabilitation, which includes both implant-supported and tooth-supported restorations, with articulation paper and foil of different thicknesses, the marked points were compared and adjusted using T-Scan.
Discussion
In this case report, three different occlusal indicators were compared and adjusted for the arrangement of occlusal contacts. Articulation papers and foils are frequently preferred in clinics due to their affordability and easy accessibility, but they can produce inaccurate markings due to saliva interference. T-Scan can measure occlusal contact positions, timings, and force distributions, and it can differentiate between implant and tooth supports. Its sensor is synthetic and resistant to saliva wetting, it can detect the proportional amount of force, and it can specifically indicate the location of the highest intensity contacts of a single tooth.