Stefan Holst: Prosthetic considerations for edentulous patients

The lecture reviews decision criteria for material selection and design options in edentulous restorations. From a clinical and patient expectation standpoint, removable and fixed restorations provide comparable long-term outcome. Removable restorations can offer advantages, such as support of extraoral tissues and long-term adaptation potential, as well as easy maintenance and hygiene measures, what is an important point in an ageing population. CAD/CAM technology shows considerable advantages over cast restorations in terms of precision of fit and reduction of mechanical complications (e.g screw breakage), homogeneity and biocompatibility of materials (Ti, Zirconia) and long-term material quality.