Missing Lateral Incisors: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly — What Have Our Patients Discovered? - ONSITE

Some “expert” guidance for the placement and timing of dental implants has led to disappointing results. Failures in the esthetic zone are especially challenging. Calibrating our patients' expectations and their understanding of treatment options must be grounded in knowledge of growth, development, and conformational change over time. Individualized assessment, including patient sensibility, is critical when curating highly technical workflows. Providing “Lamborghini-level” esthetics and performance for everyone is not realistic. We need to communicate more clearly the compromises inherent in all treatment choices.

These patients often present at a young age, creating understandable anxiety for parents. We have the ability to provide reassurance and demonstrate that satisfactory outcomes are possible in multiple ways.

This presentation will provide a historical overview followed by an exploration of the risks and benefits of the various treatment options available to manage maxillary lateral incisor agenesis.

Course Objectives:

At the conclusion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Enhance patient management

• Reinforce basic physiological principles

• Help further the ability of the interdisciplinary team to provide age-appropriate options
• Explain the orthodontic considerations of implant placement
  

Educational Method: Live Lecture