Repair of fractured connectors in a provisional fixed partial denture.

THE JOURNAL OF PROSTHETIC DENTISTRY 449 The functions of a provisional fixed partial denture include pulpal protection, maintenance of periodontal health, stabilization of tooth position, maintenance or improvement of occlusal function, and the establishment or continuation of desired esthetic contour.1,2 A fractured connector may lead to the loss or dislodgement of a retainer, which may result in occlusal disharmony, food impaction, esthetic embarrassment, and the violation of all the stated goals. Many proactive techniques have been advocated to counter the potential for connector fracture. These include increasing the dimensions of the connector,2 reinforcing the connector with metal wires or plates,3 and fabricating the connector with heat-polymerized acrylic resin reinforced with cast metal substructures4-6 or with autopolymerizing acrylic resin with cast metal.7 Despite such preventive measures, connectors still break. A common method for the repair of a fractured or missing margin is the brush paint-on technique,8 which is also called the bead-brush technique.2 The surface of the restoration that requires additional material is moistened with monomer, and a paint brush is dipped into the monomer. The wet brush is gently touched to the surface of an aliquot of polymer, “forming a small bead on the [brush] tip.”2 This bead is carried to the surface of the restoration, allowed to set in a moist, “air-free” environment (closed mouth) to reduce porosity, and finished and polished. If used to repair a broken connector (cracked, but no substance missing), this technique will result in overcontour and subsequent esthetic and periodontal compromise. However, the sections can be “readily repaired by cutting retentive sections on each side of the broken area and utilizing the brush technique to paint autopolymerizing acrylic resin to weld the 2 together.”8 This paint-on technique, applied to intracoronal preparations of the adjacent components, assures a repair of the connector that is strong, esthetic, and appropriately contoured. The following is a modification of the slot technique, which incorporates the design features of a Class II preparation. The open proximal boxes and dovetails permit more convenient placement of acrylic resin and may, by virtue of design, provide for a stronger union between the parts. Definitive refinement of the occlusal and axial contours remains uncompromised.