A patient will have multiple extractions with an immediate complete denture placed. When should the patient be informed to expect the greatest amount of residual ridge resorption?

Correct answer: B. During the first 3 to 12 months after placement

• A. Bone loss is a biological remodelling process over weeks and months, not an instantaneous event.
• B. Correct. Residual ridge resorption is MOST RAPID in the first 3–12 months following extraction, with the greatest change in the first 6 months. This is precisely why immediate dentures require relines (often at around 3–6 months) and why the definitive prosthesis is usually deferred. The patient must be warned of this before treatment so that the need for relines is not perceived as a failure.
• C. By five years the rate has slowed markedly to a chronic, low-grade loss — mandibular ridges lose roughly four times as much as maxillary over the long term.
• D. Resorption follows extraction; it is not something that occurs before treatment begins.