PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS DURING ORTHOPEDIC TREATMENT OF SECONDARY ADENTIA

Abstract

During partial and complete secondary adentia, the process of adaptation of the patient to removable complete and partial dentures is of particular importance. A patient usually adjusts to dental prostheses when he/she no longer feels any pain and discomfort while using a denture, and when psychological (getting used to a foreign body), phonetic, and motor (development of a new stereotypical behavior of chewing) adaptation is achieved. However, according to some authors, 20-26% of patients cannot get used to dental prostheses at all, and 37% struggle to get accustomed to the poor quality prosthesis. To ensure a successful outcome of the treatment, a prosthodontist should first find out what is the motivation of the patient when he/she is deciding whether to use a prosthesis or not. According to Georgian psychologist, D.N. Uznadze (1961) in his “Theory of Attitude and Set”, human behavior is developed based on needs and situations. Therefore, people who have partially or completely lost their teeth are willing to restore them, which directly depends on the situation, that is, the circumstances. Behavioral action based on motivation is determined by a person's character and psychological state, particularly temperament. Temperament is closely related to the system of needs and is one of the factors in the creation of mood. To find out motivation, we need to determine the patient's psychological and emotional mood towards the replacement of missing teeth. The willingness to use dentures is influenced by various factors: psychosomatic, social, age-related, etc. It is believed that if removable prostheses are considered as a treatment and there is a conscious attitude towards it, then this appears to be a positive motivation for a patient which leads to a good result.