Prosthodontics & Occlusion · patient case question
What is the MOST appropriate prosthodontic management at this age?
Patient case: 14-year-old with ectodermal dysplasia
Patient: 14-year-old boy, accompanied by his mother.
Chief complaint: Wants something done about his missing teeth.
History: Diagnosed in infancy with hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia. Heat intolerance in summer. No other systemic disease, no medications.
Findings: Sparse, fine, light-coloured hair. Dry skin, dystrophic nails. Frontal bossing, depressed nasal bridge, protuberant lips. Severe hypodontia with conical anterior teeth and markedly reduced alveolar ridge height in both arches. Xerostomia.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. Removable overdentures or partial dentures, relined and remade as he grows
- A. An osseointegrated implant behaves like an ankylosed tooth. Placed in a growing jaw it becomes progressively infra-occluded as the alveolus develops around it.
- B. Fixed bridgework requires sound abutments, which severe hypodontia does not provide, and a fixed span cannot adapt to a growing jaw.
- C. Extracting healthy teeth destroys the alveolar bone he will need later — every retained tooth preserves ridge volume for future implants.
- D. CORRECT. During growth the standard of care is REMOVABLE prosthodontics — overdentures or partials that can be relined and remade — combined with orthodontic input and composite reshaping of the conical teeth. Definitive implant reconstruction is deferred to skeletal maturity.
Practice Prosthodontics & Occlusion questions Prosthodontics & Occlusion study notes