Modified Trismus Appliance for Post-Radiation Trismus in Edentulous Patients- A Case Report

Treatment for restricted mouth opening, often known as trismus or lockjaw, is determined by the root cause of the condition's multiple problems. Patients who get radiation therapy for head and neck cancer may experience adverse effects like trismus. If left untreated, trismus might worsen to the point where the patient is malnourished, unable to function and the dentist faces difficulties treating patients with restricted oral access. A 68-year-old man who had just received radiation treatment for oral cancer presented to the department of Prosthodontics complaining of difficulty in opening his mouth and speaking. On examination, He was diagnosed as having grade-3 trismus with a maximum mouth opening of just 2 mm. A conventional threaded screw trismus appliance may injure the edentulous ridge on activating the appliance, as patient is partially edentulous. An innovative trismus denture base made on the edentulous ridge with a soft reline to prevent tissue damage as the trismus screw is opens the mouth.A comfortable mouth opening of 28 mm was attained without causing any stress to the edentulous ridge during a 6-month follow-up. As a result, patients with trismus who also have an edentulous ridge can employ this modified trismus device. None of the trismus management techniques can be used to an edentulous patient without endangering the remaining ridge, despite the fact that we have a number of options at our disposal. All those problems can be resolved and a healthy mouth function established with this new procedure.