Restorative dentistry clinical decision-making for hypodontia: peg and missing lateral incisor teeth.

Peg-shaped and missing lateral incisor teeth are common features for patients affected by hypodontia. While improvements in dental appearance may be a strong motivating factor for these patients, providing dental treatment to improve the clinical condition and achieve an acceptable and stable outcome can be complex and lengthy.For patients affected by hypodontia, discussion and consideration of various approaches to their individual treatment are best achieved in a multidisciplinary team environment. This allows debate of options and joint agreement between at least orthodontic and restorative dentistry specialist colleagues, based largely on clinical factors, towards a treatment plan that is acceptable to the patient. As most patients with this lateral incisor form of hypodontia are initially treated as teenagers and young adults, there is also an understanding that treatment outcomes will have lifelong maintenance and resource implications to consider.This paper identifies and discusses the key clinical features that influence the treatment planning process for a patient with either missing or peg lateral incisor teeth. These will often involve consideration of whether to open or close the lateral incisor spaces and whether to restore or replace a peg lateral incisor tooth. The process should be patient-centred, evidence-based, and aim to minimise the lifelong treatment burden, retaining options for future maintenance and retreatment.

Treatment of peri-implant diseases: a review of the literature and protocol proposal.

UNLABELLED: Over 100,000 implants were placed in the UK in 2010. As the numbers of patients with implant-retained prostheses increases, operators are encountering an increasing number of biological implant complications, most commonly peri-implant mucositis and peri-implantitis. The effective management of these complications is crucial to maintain patients' oral health. In particular, in contrast to common periodontal infections, some peri-implant infections may benefit from surgical intervention as a first line approach. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This article reviews the literature on the treatment options for peri-implant mucositis and peri-implantitis and proposes a protocol for their treatment.

An audit of the quality of root canal treatments performed by undergraduate dental students on single-rooted teeth in Glasgow dental hospital and school.

The aim of this investigation was to assess the technical quality of root canal treatments performed by undergraduate dental students on single rooted teeth at the Glasgow Dental Hospital and School. One hundred radiographs of single rooted teeth that had root canal treatment were randomly selected and examined under even illumination in a darkened room using x2 magnification. Of 100 teeth, 20 had voids, and one was perforated. The remaining 79 teeth were assessed using predetermined criteria, and 80% (n=63) were judged to be 'acceptable' 5% (n=4) were 'under-filled, and 15% (n=12) were 'over-filled'. The quality of root canal fillings performed in single rooted teeth by undergraduate dental students at the Glasgow Dental Hospital and School was found to comparable to, or better than, that reported from other international institutions.

To open or to close space--that is the missing lateral incisor question.

Developmentally absent permanent maxillary lateral incisors may be associated with several problems. The decision whether to open or to close the space should involve the patient/parent, orthodontist and restorative dentist. To optimize function and aesthetics, space should be opened using fixed appliances to accommodate an appropriate prosthesis. Implant-retained crowns offer several advantages, although adhesive bridges are more appropriate in certain circumstances. Removable partial dentures may be necessary in some instances. Where space opening is not feasible, practical or desirable, any residual spacing can be closed using fixed appliances and the permanent maxillary canines modified to resemble lateral incisors.