title: Do sensation differences exist between dental implants and natural teeth?: a meta-analysis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this systematic review was to survey evidence pertaining to the sensation differences between natural teeth and osseointegrated dental implants.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using the MEDLINE (online PubMed) database, Cochrane Library, and Scientific Citation index, we performed a systematic search of articles. We used the following search terms: "perception or sensation and dental implant." The systematic review of the extracted articles was performed to see the sensation differences between natural teeth and dental implants.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of six studies on oral sensation, "tactile sensibility," and "thickness discrimination" were included in the meta-analysis. As to the "tactile sensibility", all studies indicated the threshold levels of the implants were about 4-20 times higher than that of natural teeth. The tactile sensibility of an implant was significantly higher than that of a natural tooth, with an standardized mean difference (SMD) of 8.3619 (95% CI, 6.3920-10.3317) and a P < 0.0001. As to the "thickness discrimination", all studies indicated the threshold levels of implants were about 1.2-2.3 times higher than that of natural teeth. The thickness discrimination was significantly higher than that of natural teeth with an SMD of 1.2368 (95% CI, 0.8699-1.6038) and a P < 0.0001.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This meta-analysis suggested that both tactile sensibility and thickness discrimination thresholds of implants were significantly higher than those of natural teeth. This meta-analysis reconfirms that sensation differences between dental implants and natural teeth exist.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, Institute of Health Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Nobuaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Higaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, Institute of Health Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Takaharu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Goto
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, Institute of Health Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishida
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, Institute of Health Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Megumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, Institute of Health Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoritoki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tomotake
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, Institute of Health Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Tokushima, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ichikawa
mesh_terms: D015921:Dental Implants; D006801:Humans; D016348:Osseointegration / Q000502:physiology; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology*; D012684:Sensory Thresholds / Q000502:physiology; D013236:Stereognosis / Q000502:physiology; D014070:Tooth / Q000502:physiology*; D014110:Touch / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D015921:Dental Implants
keywords: implant; meta-analysis; sensation; tactile; thickness