Published online Dec 26, 2021. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i36.11276
Peer-review started: May 4, 2021
First decision: June 6, 2021
Revised: June 7, 2021
Accepted: November 15, 2021
Article in press: November 15, 2021
Published online: December 26, 2021
Processing time: 233 Days and 10 Hours
The pontic design of fixed dental prostheses (FDPs) is strongly associated with the phonetic function.
The phonetic function of anterior FDPs with different pontic designs remains understudied.
To investigate the immediate and short-term influence of pontic design of anterior FDPs on Chinese speech.
Two FDPs with saddle pontic and modified ridge lap pontic design were fabricated. The acoustic analysis of patient’s articulation was conducted immediately after wearing the FDPs and 1 wk after wearing these FDPs.
The effect of FDP on Chinese vowels was slight, and the recovery of vowel distortion occurred within 1 wk. Three Chinese fricatives were found to have obvious distortions, and the /s/ sound distortion lasted for more than 1 wk for the patient wearing FDP with modified ridge lap pontic.
The influence of anterior FDP on articulation of Chinese vowels is insignificant, while the articulation of Chinese fricative consonants is more susceptible to the FDP with modified ridge lap pontic design.
When fabricating anterior FDPs for patients with speech related professions, saddle pontic design can be an alternative option compared with modified ridge lap pontic design.