Biomechanics of RPD

Dr. Hiba Hamid

Demonstrator Prosthodontics
 Principles of a Removable Partial Denture
• Dentist must know about the various forces acting on the denture and soft tissues and their response to
these forces.
• The treatment plan must be based on a complete examination and diagnosis of the individual patient.
• RPDs aren’t rigidly attached to teeth, control of potential movement under functional load is critical to
providing the best chance for stability and patient accommodation.
• It is important that stress does not reach physiologic tolerance, which is range of mechanical stimulus
that a system can resist without disruption or traumatic consequences.
• RPD should restore form and function without injury to the remaining oral structures. It should produce
esthetics and function without compromising on health of the soft tissues.
• RPD is a form of treatment, not a cure. Patient should be kept on follow-up, recalled and reviewed to
ensure success of treatment.
 Biomechanical Considerations
• Whether supporting structures capable of resisting applied forces depends on:

1) What typical forces require resistance

2) What duration and intensity these forces have

3) What capacity the teeth and / or mucosae have to resist these forces

4) How material use and application influence this teeth-tissue resistance

5) Whether resistance changes over time

• Direction, duration, frequency, and magnitude of force.

• Bone provides support for RPD (i.e. alveolar bone by way of PDL and residual ridge bone through soft tissue

covering)
• Appropriate design includes selection and location of components in conjunction with a harmonious occlusion.

• Types of resistance generated:

1) Tooth based
2) Tooth-tissue based
 Types of stresses (forces) acting on a RPD within the
oral cavity
• Stresses can be classified in to:
1) Vertical –
a) Displacing forces
b) Dislodging forces
2) Horizontal
3) Torsion

Resistance to stress can be divided in to:

• Tooth based resistance: contributes mainly to resisting horizontal stress (direct
retainers)
• Tooth-tissue based resistance: contributes to resisting vertical stress and
torsion (major connectors and indirect retainers)
 Factors contributing to amount of stress on RPD
 The length of the edentulous span (example Kennedy Class III usually exhibits no lever

action)
 Quality of ridge support (example wider ridges disperse more stress due to the Snow Shoe

Principle)
 Quality of oral mucosa (example healthy mucosa is able to withstand much greater force

than weak flabby mucosa)

 Clasp design (flexibility, length, material used)

 Occlusal harmony
 Snow-Shoe Principle
• The basis of the principle is to
distribute forces / stress onto as
large an area as possible in
order to counteract the stresses
applied to a partial denture.
• Maximal extension is applied
for support.
Principles of Mechanical Forces
Mechanical Force Principles to be considered within the
oral cavity
1) Lever principle (divided into orders I, II, and III)
2) Incline plane principle
3) Wheel and axle (rotation)
Wheel and axle (along sagittal axis)

Wheel and axle (along horizontal axis)

 Types of Lever action
There are three types of mechanical lever action based on:
1) The position of the fulcrum
2) The location of the load along the fulcrum line
3) The area from which the effort to displace is exerted
 Lever principles
• A lever is a long bar with a single support around which it rotates when a load is
applied to any of it’s ends.
• Support around which lever rotates is called the fulcrum.

• Three types of levers:

1) Lever 1 (1st order levers)

2) Lever 2 (2nd order levers)

3) Lever 3 (3rd order levers)

First Order Lever
Example of First Order Lever Action
In cantilever type of RPD
where there is distal
extension. If there is bone
resorption under the distal
extension, it will result in
effort leading to first order
lever movement along the
fulcrum line.
Second Order Lever Action
Third Order Lever Action
 Biomechanics of Inclined Planes

The rest will slip off the

inclined rest seat.

However, flattening the rest seat will

aid in retention of the direct retainer
on the tooth surface and resist
horizontal forces.
Wheel and Axle principle (Rotation)
The partial denture can rotate
along one of three planes.
A.Sagittal plane
B. Frontal plane
C.Horizontal Plane

And along one of three axes:

Sagittal axis
Vertical axis
Horizontal axis
 Planes and Axes

The Plane: surface on which movement occurs.

The Axis: line around which the movement takes place.

ROTATION OF FRONTAL PLANE ALONG ROTATION OF HORIZONTAL PLANE ON
SAGITTAL AXIS VERTICAL AXIS
FRONTAL PLANE ROTATION
ALONG SAGITTAL AXIS