title: Prosthetic restoration in the single-tooth gap: patient preferences and analysis of the WTP index.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objective of this study was to evaluate the preference of a patients' population, according to the index of willingness to pay (WTP), against two treatments to restore a single-tooth gap: the implant-supported crown (ISC) and the 3-unit fixed partial denture prosthesis (FPDP) on natural teeth.
  
  
  METHODS
  Willingness to pay values were recorded on 107 subjects by asking the WTP from a starting bid of €2000 modifiable through monetary increases or decreases (€100). Data were collected through an individually delivered questionnaire. The characteristics of the population and choices made, the median values and WTP associations with socio-demographic parameters (Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests), correlations between variables (chi-square test in contingency tables) and significant parameters for predicting WTP values obtained in a multiple linear regression model were revealed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 64% of patients expressed a preference for ISC, while the remaining 36% of the population chose the FPDP. The current therapeutic choice and those carried out in the past were generally in agreement (>70% of cases, P = 0.0001); a relationship was discovered between the anterior and posterior area to the same method of rehabilitation (101 of 107 cases, 94.4%). The WTP median values for ISC were of €3000 and of €2500 in the anterior and posterior areas, respectively. The smallest amount of money has been allocated for FPDP in posterior region (median of €1500). The "importance of oral care" for the patient was a significant predictor, in the regression model analysis, for the estimation of both anterior (P = 0.0003) and posterior (P < 0.0001) WTP values. The "previous therapy" variable reached and was just close to significance in anterior (P = 0.0367) and posterior (P = 0.0511) analyses, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Within the limitations of this study, most of the population (64%) surveyed indicated the ISC as a therapeutic solution for the replacement of a single missing tooth, showing a higher WTP index in the anterior area. Among investigated socio-demographic variables, the importance assigned by the patient to oral care appeared to influence WTP values of the rehabilitation, regardless the location of the single gap in the mouth.
authors.affiliation: Division of Oral Rehabilitation, Istituto Stomatologico Italiano, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Augusti
authors.affiliation: Division of Oral Rehabilitation, Istituto Stomatologico Italiano, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Augusti
authors.affiliation: Division of Oral Rehabilitation, Istituto Stomatologico Italiano, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Dino
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Re
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003442:Crowns; D016854:Dental Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D019250:Dental Implants, Single-Tooth; D019094:Dental Prosthesis, Implant-Supported; D019232:Dental Restoration Failure; D003830:Denture, Partial, Fixed; D004522:Educational Status; D004651:Employment; D005260:Female; D005382:Financing, Personal; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007576:Jaw, Edentulous, Partially / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D020380:Needs Assessment; D009910:Oral Hygiene; D010146:Pain / Q000523:psychology; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D057240:Patient Preference; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: implant; patient preference; single-tooth gap; treatment plan; willingness to pay