Improvement of Articulation Disorder Using Flexible Partial Denture in Intellectural Disability Patient with Missing Lower Incisors

Speech is complex psycho-physiological mutual process which includes many orofacial organs. Especially, teeth play an especially important role as an articulation organ in conjunction with the lips and tongue. When teeth are missing, the position of tongue and mandible is adjusted to produce correct sound. If a patient’s adaptive function is inadequate for modification of malocclusion, prosthodontic and orthodontic interventions are necessary. Missing teeth of young patients should be reconstructed bacause it can cause malocclusion, decreased masticatory efficiency, articulation disorders, esthetic problem, and temporomandibular disorder. Valplast�(Valplast International Corp, New York, USA) flexible denture is useful for rehabilitation due to its excellent physical properties, esthetics, and small volume. This case is regardingan intellecturally disabled patient with anarticulation disorder caused by missing lower incisors due to trauma. The patient showed improvement in articulation by using flexible partial denture. The purpose of this report is to figure out the influence of missing lower anterior teeth on articulation