The shortened dental arch concept: awareness and opinion of dentists in Victoria, Australia

Abstract

Background: The occlusion of a complete dental arch is generally desirable but not necessary nor always achievable in many individuals. It is, however, relevant for dentists to consider what minimum number of teeth is required by individuals for oral function. This study investigated dentists' awareness and opinion of the shortened dental arch (SDA) concept in an Australian context. Methods: A self-administered voluntary and anonymous questionnaire was mailed to a sample of 434 dentists, randomly selected from both rural and metropolitan locations in Victoria, Australia. The information collected included awareness of the SDA concept and its application as a treatment option. Results: More than half of the respondents (61%) were aware of the SDA concept. All respondents 'agreed' or 'strongly agreed' with the seven criteria of SDA proposed in this study based on K€ ayser (1989). The majority (78.4%) believed that the SDA concept is useful in clinical practice. Dentists with <20 years of experience expressed more awareness compared to others (v 2 test, p = 0.004). Conclusions: Most dentists who responded to this survey agreed that the SDA is a practical and useful treatment modality for older adults with limitations to complex restorative care. However, application of the SDA varied considerably among dentists.

Assessment of Nepalese prosthodontist’s attitude towards morphological completeness of dental arches in partially dentate older patients

“…14 The reason behind this difference in findings may be specialists are more active in updating their knowledge through continuing dental education programme, workshops and seminars Findings in this study showed that teaching and clinical experience was not associated with level of knowledge of SDA. This was different from the study done on Sudan dentist 11 and Australian dentist 15 in which recent graduates were more aware of the concept than those who graduated 20 years before. This may be due to rapid growth in information technology and networking and seminars, workshops etc.…”

Knowledge, perceptions and clinical application of the shortened dental arch concept among Malaysian government dentists

“…Previous studies have suggested that the SDA concept is particularly indicated for certain groups of people: middle‐aged and elderly individuals with limited possibilities for complex restorative treatment; patients in high‐risk groups; and subjects who are prone to caries, periodontal disease and tooth loss. One of the reasons for this suggestion is that older adults with reduced dexterity and reduced ability to maintain good oral hygiene may be disadvantaged by complex fixed prostheses or PRDPs that replace missing molars.…”

“…In older adults and individuals with fewer teeth, dentists often must consider whether replacement of the lost dentition is necessary. If no treatment is provided, as an alternative, dentists should consider the minimum number of teeth required for the individual to have satisfactory oral function along with acceptable aesthetics.…”

“…However, the use of PRDPs in this respect is seen as a common source of iatrogenic periodontal disease. Based on the literature, not all missing teeth need to be restored using a prosthesis, as patients can still masticate quite well even with missing molars. Therefore, the fabrication of PRDPs for partially dentate patients may not be required if oral function and aesthetics can be achieved with the remaining teeth.…”

Herodontics – is there a place for maintaining the apparently hopeless tooth?

“…It is appropriate at this point to discuss the concept of the shortened dental arch as described by Kayser where a minimum of four occlusal units are present which can provide functional satisfaction to older adults with sufficient adaptive capacity. Other reviews have suggested that in general there are no clinically significant differences between subjects with shortened dental arches of three to five occlusal units regarding variables such as masticatory ability, signs and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders, migration of remaining teeth, periodontal support, and oral comfort. Despite the acceptance of the shortened dental arch concept by the majority of dentists, it is not widely practised.…”