AESTHETIC SOLUTIONS FOR REMOVABLE PARTIAL DENTURE RETAINED BY METAL CLASPS

Abstract

The construction of a removable partial denture (RPD) aims the replacement of lost dental units, incorporating them into the stomatognathic system, without harming the biomechanical balance. Besides, there is a great challenge today, of combining function and esthetics. The difficulty in achieving esthetic harmony by the presence of metal clasps on labial surfaces of anterior teeth justify studies aimed at solving this problem in the RPDs. There is still the fact that this procedure is simpler and less costly for the patient compared to other treatment options. Therefore, this study presents esthetic solutions for RPD and suggests the comparison among conventional metal clasps on buccal retainers with clips in the palatal area, through three clinical cases of patients with partial absence of anterior dental units. Two prosthetic pieces for each patient were made: 1) prioritizing only the biomechanical principles and 2) considering both the biomechanical and cosmetic principles. It was observed that MDL and Quereilhac clasps are viable alternatives to get esthetics in RPDs of anterior edentulous patients with Class III and IV of Kennedy. Therefore, it can be concluded that there was an improvement in smile of individuals partially edentulous in the anterior region, by not viewing the metal structure on the buccal area of the teeth.