A patient-based assessment of implant-stabilized and conventional complete dentures.
BACKGROUND
Outcomes of oral implant therapy have been described primarily in terms of implant survival rates and the durability of implant superstructures. Reports of patient-based outcomes of implant therapy have been sparse, and none of these studies have used oral-specific health status measures.


OBJECTIVE
This study assessed the impact of implant-stabilized prostheses on the health status of complete denture wearers using patient-based, oral-specific health status measures. It also assessed the influence of preoperative expectations on outcome.


METHODS
Three experimental groups requesting replacement of their conventional complete dentures completed an Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP) and a validated denture satisfaction scale before treatment. One group received an implant-stabilized prosthesis (IG), and 2 groups received new conventional complete dentures (CDG1 and CDG2). After treatment, all subjects completed the health status measures again; preoperative data were compared with postoperative data.


RESULTS
Before treatment, satisfaction with complete dentures was low in all 3 groups. Subjects requesting implants (IG and CDG1) had high expectations for implant-stabilized prostheses. Improvement in denture satisfaction and OHIP scores was reported by all 3 groups after treatment. Subjects who received their preferred treatment (IG and CDG2 subjects) reported a much greater improvement than CDG1 subjects. Preoperative expectation levels did not appear to influence satisfaction with the outcomes of implant therapy in IG subjects.


CONCLUSIONS
Subjects who received implants (IG) that replaced conventional complete dentures reported significant improvement after treatment, as did subjects who requested conventional replacement dentures (CDG2). The OHIP appears useful in identifying patients likely to benefit from implant-stabilized prostheses.
Allen
P F
PF
Department of Restorative Dentistry, The Dental School, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. p.f.allen@iol.ie
McMillan
A S
AS
Walshaw
D
D
D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001294:Attitude to Health; D015921:Dental Implants; D003766:Dental Occlusion; D019094:Dental Prosthesis, Implant-Supported; D003779:Denture Design; D003781:Denture Retention; D003824:Denture, Complete; D003828:Denture, Overlay; D003830:Denture, Partial, Fixed; D004955:Esthetics, Dental; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D007575:Jaw, Edentulous / Q000534:rehabilitation; D016014:Linear Models; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009909:Oral Health; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D015921:Dental Implants