Immediate loading of implants with mandibular overdentures: one-year clinical results of a prospective study.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this report is to present the implant and clinical outcomes of an immediate-loading protocol of TiUnite implants with mandibular overdentures in edentulous patients.


METHODS
Two groups of edentulous patients were selected. Thirty-five consecutively treated patients received 70 immediately loaded TiUnite implants and 69 Brånemark implants as backup (1 patient received 1 Brånemark implant). The control group was a historical cohort that comprised 42 patients who received 111 Brånemark implants. All overdentures were supported by a resilient bar mechanism. Implant and clinical outcomes, including maintenance events for the first year, were recorded.


RESULTS
Implant success rates were in excess of 95% with both protocols. Immediately loaded implants had less bone loss than did implants loaded with the conventional protocol (Mann-Whitney U test; P = .001). Patients in the immediate-loading group required more prosthodontic maintenance, consisting of overdenture remakes and laboratory relining of prostheses (Chi-square test; P < .05). Of note, 74% of patients in the immediate-loading group needed a reline to improve the denture seal around the bar housing (Chi-square test; P < .05).


CONCLUSIONS
The favorable implant and bone level outcomes with immediate loading attest to its biologic success. The prosthetic maintenance encountered in the immediate-loading group does not negate the clinical potential of the treatment but rather suggests that the protocol may benefit from modifications.
Attard
Nikolai J
NJ
Department of Prosthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. nik.attard@utoronto.ca
David
Lesley A
LA
Zarb
George A
GA
D003758:Dental Implantation, Endosseous; D015921:Dental Implants; D019094:Dental Prosthesis, Implant-Supported; D019232:Dental Restoration Failure; D003781:Denture Retention / Q000295:instrumentation; D003825:Denture, Complete, Immediate; D003826:Denture, Complete, Lower; D003828:Denture, Overlay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007575:Jaw, Edentulous / Q000628:therapy*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008334:Mandible; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric
D015921:Dental Implants