Over the patient’s lifetime their dentition is subject to a range of destructive forces which may decrease the longevity of individual teeth and ultimately the entire dentition. Caries, tooth wear, cracks, fractures, and previous restorative treatments can all result in severely compromised teeth with limited, and often weakened, remaining tooth structure. While complex restorative options involving fixed prosthodontics will provide suitable solutions in many cases, they may in some circumstances further weaken the tooth by removing sound tooth structure. There are situations when more conservative and less costly alternatives need to be considered for patients.
This lecture and hands-on workshop will look at a range of clinical situations involving weakened and functionally fatigued teeth and discuss the conservative restorative management of these teeth to preserve the remaining tooth structure and maintain the patient’s dentition.
