[Protocol for clinical articulation of complete dentures in maximum intercuspation]

The aim of the study was to evaluate the application of clinical protocol for articulation of complete dentures (CDs) in maximum intercuspation (MIP) under the control of T-Scan 8 system and articulation paper. The study involved 32 edentulous patients, aged from to years (mean age 71±9.28 years), who had been treated with complete dentures in the Faculty of Dental Medicine, Medical University-Sofia. Two sets of Superacryl Plus plastic CDs with Flat Ac Acrylic resin teeth were made for each patient according to the classic methodology. The first set of CDs (group 1) was articulated in the MIP under the control of articulation paper only, while the second set of CDs (group 2) was articulated according to a clinical protocol, in which a digital T-Scan 8 analysis and an articulation paper registration were combined. In group 1, occlusion time (OT) higher than normal (56.2%); force outliers (81.25%); and reduced vertical dimension of occlusion (43.8%) were found, resulting in total occlusal force of 100% in the MIP in only 15.67% of the cases. In group 2, OT higher than normal was found in only one set of CDs (3.12%) and force outliers in four sets of CDs (12.5%). The strongest contacts were 2.03±1.57 per denture and most distally situated, and the total force in the MIP averaged 99.39±0.66%. Thus clinical protocol for articulation of CDs under digital control in combination with articulation paper allows the proper selection of contacts in articulation of dentures in the MIP by overcoming the subjective factor.