ORAL REHABILITATION IN A PATIENT AFFECTED BY AMYOTROFIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) represents a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive muscular paralysis reflecting degeneration of motor neurons in the primary motor cortex, brainstem and spinal cord. Degeneration of the upper and lower motor neurons leads to spasticity, impaired reflexes, muscle fatigue, muscle weakness, and eventually atrophy. Affected individuals vary significantly in the locus of disease onset, presentation at diagnosis, and rate of progression. Progressive degenerative disease such as ALS put young patients in a non-self-sufficient condition, leading to an increasing strain in terms of time and money for their families and caregivers. Moreover, patients with severe abnormalities of stomatognathic system worse their conditions and caregivers situation, increasing the work stress.The Authors describe a case of 35 years old ALS disabled patient, affected by chronic aggressive periodontitis and multiple carious lesions in poor oral hygiene condition. The Authors believed necessary to implement easy prosthetic solutions in term of construction, cost, effectiveness and easy maintenance over time. Thus, the treatment provided a fixed prosthetic rehabilitation by endosseous implants in both arches according to the Columbus Bridge protocol. In conclusion, the implant-prosthetic technique proposed represents a viable treatment choice in all those cases in which it’s necessary to provide immediately an effective and safe dental prosthesis. The prosthetic implants stabilization by bar ensures a high predictability of osseointegration over time