The occlusal plane indicator: a new device for determining the inclination of the occlusal plane

Laser Indicated Occlusal Plane Device: A Novel Technique for Occlusal Plane Orientation

Parallelism to the ala-tragus line is commonly used as a guide for the orientation of the occlusal plane with the help of a fox plane. The accuracy of parallelism is affected by improper judgment or patient movement. This report describes a method with a modified fox plane that aids in occlusal plane determination. The device is placed in the patient's mouth with the maxillary occlusal rim to determine parallelism to the ala-tragus line and interpupillary line. The adjustments are made until the laser light on the device runs parallel to the ala-tragus line, and the spirit bubble is centered between the lines of the tube. This technique facilitates direct visualization of parallelism, thereby avoiding parallax errors.

Fabrication of occlusal rims to record the maxillomandibular relation for complete dentures

This article describes an alternative method to establish the inclination of the occlusal plane by using the hamular notch, incisive papilla plane. By using this plane, the fabrication of occlusal rims that conform to an ideal relationship may make chairside trimming of the rims more straightforward.

The occlusal plane in the facial context: inter-operator repeatability of a new three-dimensional method

The repeatability of a non-invasive digital protocol proposed to evaluate the three-dimensional (3D) position of the occlusal plane in the face is assessed. Dental virtual models and soft tissue facial morphology of 20 adult subjects were digitally integrated using a 3D stereophotogrammetric imaging system. The digital 3D coordinates of facial and dental landmarks were obtained by two different operators. Camper's (facial) and occlusal (dental) planes were individuated, and their 3D relationships were measured. The repeatability of the protocol was investigated and showed no significant differences in repeated digitizations. The angle between occlusal and Camper's planes was smaller than 2° in the frontal and horizontal projections. In the sagittal projection, the angle was observed to be, on average, 4.9°. The determined occlusal plane pitch, roll and yaw values show good agreement with previously published data obtained by different protocols. The current non-invasive method was repeatable, without inter-operator differences and can facilitate assessment of healthy subjects.

Occlusal plane orientation: a statistical and clinical analysis in different clinical situations

PURPOSE

Orientation of the occlusal plane is important in a number of clinical situations. Using the reported soft and hard tissue landmarks is difficult and requires experience, as the landmarks are located on the face or by use of a cephalometric radiograph. Improper use of these landmarks may compromise the functional and esthetic result of prosthetic restorations. This study evaluated the reliability of the hamular notch/incisive papilla plane (HIP) in establishing the occlusal plane.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Ninety healthy, Indian adults (60 dentate, 30 edentulous) participated in this study. The occlusal plane of the subjects was compared with their HIPs. In dentate subjects, the maxillary stone cast was mounted on the Wills surveyor with HIP, which was made parallel to the horizontal plane using the tripoding method. The vertical distance between the occlusal plane and floor of the surveyor was measured at four points. When the measured values were equal, the two planes were confirmed to be parallel for that situation. In turn, this relation confirmed the parallelism between the occlusal plane and HIP. In the edentulous subjects, the occlusal plane, established clinically using the ala tragal line, was compared with the HIP radiographically using lateral cephalograms. Paired t-test was used to test the equality of the mean differences at a 0.05 significance level.

RESULTS

The mean differences from the right canine were: 0.055 cm at the left canine, 0.05 cm at the right molar, and 0.065 cm at the left molar in dentate subjects and 0.001 cm between the incisive papilla and hamular notch in edentulous subjects. The HIP appeared parallel to the occlusal plane as the paired t-test showed no statistically significant difference (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

In the population tested, the HIP was parallel to the occlusal plane. Therefore, this may be a viable reference in complete denture prosthodontics.