Dental Splinting – Conservative approach to strengthen teeth and reposition a lower incisor

Splinting is a procedure used to stabilize teeth which have become loose as a effect of losing the supporting bone around them to periodontal disease, which is known as secondary occlusal trauma. The problem is often complicated by heavy bite stress.There are two basic types of periodontal splinting, with some variation. The first is “extra-coronal splinting”, in which a stabilizing wire, fiber-reinforced ribbon, or similar stabilization device, is bonded to the outsides of the teeth like a fixed orthodontic retainer. The second is “intra-coronal splinting”, in which a slot is milled into the affected teeth, and the stabilizing device is inserted into the slot and bonded in place. This can make the splint less visible, but accomplishes the same goal of immobilizing the teeth.If the teeth have lost more than 40% of the supporting “alveolar” bone around them, it means “severe” periodontal disease occurred. What is the most frequent is that teeth which are mobile (loose) enough to require splinting have that diagnosis. However, if the tooth roots are very short or thin, or if the bone around them is not dense enough, the teeth may be mobile while less than 40% of the bone has been lost.

I filmed this procedure to show you how to strengthen lower incisors with a material called Ribbond. Dental splinting of periodontally involved teeth can be accomplished by a direct method of reinforced bonding. This case also includes removal, repositioning, and bonding a lower incisor back into the same arch. GC