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Prosthetic Treatment of the Edentulous Patient, 4th edn

R. M. Basker and J. C. Davenport Blackwell Munksgaard, Oxford, 2002 315 pp., softback, £29.50 ISBN 0 632 05998

What relevance does a textbook on edentulous patients have to orthodontics? The answer to this question is in Chapter 12—Dentures and muscles, where the relevance of orththodontics to the practice of prosthodontics is discussed. Although occlusion for complete dentures is somewhat different to that of the natural dentition, I think orthodontists should find this chapter interesting, especially the discussion of development of the natural occlusion.

The fourth edition of this text closely follows the format of previous editions. Most of the original photographs and line drawings are present, but they are much improved. The book could be further improved with some clinical colour photographs, but I imagine this would greatly increase its modest price. The chapters have been enlarged to bring them up-to-date and this edition includes cited references in the body of the text as well as a bibliography at the end of each chapter. I particularly welcome the emphasis placed upon the dentist’s responsibility for providing the technician with detailed prescriptions for laboratory work. Additionally, suggestions for quality control and enhancement for audit have been included at the end of each clinical chapter.

Clinical treatment of edentulous patients starts at Chapter 7. The previous six chapters set the scene with an appraisal of the complete denture situation, the transition to the edentulous state and factors affecting prognosis. Personally, I would have preferred to read these chapters as a discussion towards the end of the book as I found them distracting as an introduction. Also, the management of edentulous patients starts with a discussion of copy denture techniques, rather than the basic principles of complete denture prosthetics. I can understand the rationale for this sequence, as the authors acknowledge that future demand for complete dentures will be from older, more difficult patients, but this is more likely to be appreciated by experienced practitioners rather than undergraduate students.

I was surprised to see there are some outdated ideas and errors remaining. For example, the book describes ‘socketing’ for immediate dentures; the contra-indications for immediate dentures are incorrect and do not include radiotherapy to the jaws. Also, the practice of staging extractions with the removal of the posterior teeth first followed by an immediate denture to replace the anterior teeth after the posterior sockets have remodelled is not discussed. I feel Chapter 3 needs further, thorough revision. The authors later mention that ‘denture hyperplasia is the result of chronic irritation, a well-recognized cause of malignancy’. There is absolutely no evidence whatsoever to substantiate this remark and this myth should no longer be propagated. Surgical treatment of the enlarged, undercut maxillary tuberosity seems to have been omitted.

Overall, despite these minor criticisms, Prosthodontic Treatment of the Edentulous Patient remains an excellent textbook, packed full of useful information for undergraduate students, experienced practitioners, and even orthodontists!

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wilson, J. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Wilson, J.