Prosthodontic Care For Edentulous Patients With Parkinson Disease

ABSTRACT

Parkinson’s disease is seen in adults in their late middle or old age. It has four cardinal signs - resting tremor, bradykinesia, akinesia, and postural instability. Patient’s gait is often slow, shuffling with a stooped posture and they tend to walk faster with shorter steps. The affected patients have uncontrolled movements of the body along with stiffness of muscles. Tremors in orofacial musculature caused by Parkinson’s disease can make dental treatments, a challenge. The psychological component like depression, cognitive problems, and apathy further jeopardise the successful fabrication and utilisation of complete denture. This case series presents completely edentulous patients with Parkinson’s disease successfully treated with complete dentures in a sympathetic and caring approach. Some modification of techniques and materials were adopted to suit the special situations.