Radiographical check-ups to evaluate bone levels cannot be repeated too often to avoid unnecessary radiation. Monitoring the overlying soft tissues may help to identify eventual problems of the underlying bone, although the correlation...

Saliva plays a significant role in the preservation and maintenance of oral health and function. It supports digestion by preparing food for mastication and swallowing, contributes to taste perception, facilitates speech communication and provides oral tissues...

The gingiva is tightly connected to the underlying periosteum. It is globally keratinized and has a stippled surface. Its color varies from pink to brown or even black, depending on race and/or melanin deposits. It can be distinguished from alveolar mucosa, which...

Routine evaluation of a patient’s temporo-mandibular joint function is an integral part of any oral examination.
Moreover, good muscular control and painless coordination of jaw movements are desirable in the management of edentulism...

The key to understanding maxillo-mandibular jaw relations from a patient-centered treatment point of view is to recognize the inseparable nature of the mandible’s two positions - vertical and horizontal. They can be discussed...

The recording of patient-specific vertical and horizontal jaw relations is a necessary starting point when planning for the occlusal rehabilitation. They are integral components of the mandible’s centric relation (CR)...

Successful oral rehabilitation of edentulous patients with removable prostheses demands careful adherence to a clinical protocol.
Clinical objectives are met by using a routine clinical protocol that includes most or all of the following steps...

Most patients’ mouth opening readily permits access for routine prosthodontic and surgical treatment interventions. Limited mouth opening or microstomia is encountered in patients exposed to sclerodermia, diffuse systemic...

Optimal esthetic treatment outcomes require a harmonious reconciliation between lip morhology and teeth positioning. Lips provide a picture frame for the anterior teeth that support them; with mouth size and labial contours depending on genetically...

A steroid is an organic compound and a type of lipid substance. Steroids play a critical role in metabolism, for example, as the dietary fat Cholesterol, as bile acids or as steroid hormones (e.g. Cortisone/Glucocorticoids, Estrogens, Testosterone). The more complex...

Bisphosphonates (BP) inhibit osteoclast activity and remain in the bone for a prolonged period. Bisphosphonates are the most commonly prescribed drugs to treat osteoporosis, bone fragility disorders, like Paget’s disease, osteogenesis imperfecta...

Patients may have compromised blood coagulation due to inherited hemophilia or acquired disorders of coagulation resulting from preventive anticoagulant therapy in case of cardiovascular diseases. There are also states of heightened coagulation...

Osteoporosis is a frequent disease affecting predominantly postmenopausal women. The prevalence is 7% in women aged 55 and raises to 19% in women aged 80. Osteoporosis is diagnosed by a decreased radiologic bone density (DXA-score). Primary osteoporosis is more...

Diabetes refers to metabolic diseases where blood sugar levels are too high, a condition termed hyperglycemia, and where symptoms as increased hunger, weight loss, more frequent urination, weakness and fatigue and excessive thirst are observed. High...

It is important to evaluate signs indicating if the patient abuses alcohol or takes recreational drugs and may have developed addictions. In general these drugs have a psychedelic,...