Oral Rehabilitation with implant-supported overdenture in a child with hypohidrotic ecto-dermal dysplasia

Introduction Ectodermal dysplasia syndromes are a heterogeneous group of inherited diseases characterised by abnormal development of tissues of ectodermal origin. The most common form of ectodermal dysplasia syndromesis X-linked hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia characterised by abnormalities of the skin, teeth, hair and sweat glands. The intraoral abnormalities include hypodontia, malformed teeth (conically shaped) and reduced alveolar ridge height. It causes severe impairment of chewing, swallowing, speech, aesthetics and affects social relation. Early dental treatment at 2-3 years is essential to improve oral function and reduce the social impairment. This may include resin bonded restorations to conventional prosthetic treatment. In some cases suffering from severe hypodontia, however, conventional prostheses are inadequate due to lack of retention and instability. The replacement of teeth by implants is usually restricted to patients with completed craniofacial growth; however, implants can be used as abutments for overdentures.This study reports a 9-year follow-up case of a child affected with X-linked hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasiaaccompanied by anodontia. Case report At the age of 2 years, conventional upper and lower removable prostheses were fabricated. Subsequently, at the age of 11 years and 11 months; the patient was treated with a lower implant supported overdenture placed on two tapered implants (3.8 × 10 mm) in the anterior mandible. Cone beam computer tomography of the mandible was done and Dicom data used to obtain a rapid stereolithographic model. Conclusion Implants can be successfully placed, restored and loaded in growing patients with ectodermal dysplasia