Case Studies

Recovery from Trauma due to Road Traffic Accident with Tooth Replacement Therapy

Dr Firdaus Hanapiah
BDS(Otago) MSc(Lon.) FDSRCS(Eng.)

Introduction

Road traffic accident has always been one of the more common causes of teeth loss in otherwise normal dentition of patients. Preventive measures like wearing of helmets for motorcyclists and seatbelts for drivers have reduced the mortality rates significantly in road traffic accidents.

However, the loss of dentitions is on the rise as helmets and seatbelts may not be as effective in preventing such trauma.

Traditionally the way of replacements of lost teeth would be to construct a denture or fixed bridge. However, both are not as good as replacement of the lost teeth with dental implants.

Figure 1 : Implant osseointegrated ready for loading

A 45 year-old female lost her upper anterior tooth due to a road traffic accident five years previously. She replaced it with an upper removable denture. However, she was never completely satisfied with this solution as the denture hampered her speech and mastication.

We decided that she was a qualified candidate for a single tooth implant. We placed a single implant in the upper jaw and augmented the maxillary ridge with a synthetic grafting material.

Three months later we then placed a final crown to finish the case in a satisfactory manner.

The placement of the single tooth implant gave her the freedom from her denture. She can now eat better and smile with confidence.

Figure 2 : Abutment placed and torqued

Figure 3 : Crown inserted on top of the single tooth implant

Figure 4 : Final smile with implant crown in place

Discussion

The loss of teeth due to trauma is often unexpected and is not only a physical loss to the patient but also a psychological loss. The patient will suffer loss of confidence in the way they see themselves. The use of implant in this case will not just give better aesthetic result but also give a better functional satisfaction to the patient.