Custom Cast Ball Attachments Used on Outdated Implants to Restore a Maxillary Implant-Supported Overdenture

Abstract

The lack of compatible prosthetic components can be a complication during oral rehabilitation using outdated implants. The aim of the present clinical report was to describe an alternative technique for the fabrication of a maxillary implant-supported overdenture in a patient with 20-year-old dental implants using castable spherical patterns and ball attachments. The patient had been wearing a relined bar/clip overdenture in the mandible on 4 external-hexagon dental implants and a relined complete denture in the maxilla on 4 internal-hexagon implants due to abutment screw fracture inside of the implants, losing the attachment system. The remaining maxillary dental implants did not possess attachments compatible with current systems due to configuration changes by the manufacturer in the dental implant's platform and the components over time. Therefore, castable spherical patterns and cast ball attachments were used to fabricate a maxillary implant-supported overdenture. The mandible rehabilitation was performed using 4 osseointegrated dental implants with a fixed implant-supported prosthesis. The use of cast ball attachments on the maxillary dental implants avoided invasive procedures on the remaining implants. Considering the lack of available compatible prosthetic components for the osseointegrated implants, this technique was considered a viable and satisfactory treatment option.