title: Maxillary 3-implant removable prostheses without palatal coverage on Locator abutments - a case series.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to present the clinical outcomes of patients with an edentulous maxilla treated with a removable prosthesis without palatal coverage retained by Locator abutments on three titanium implants.
  
  
  METHODS
  All the patients in a private dental clinic consecutively treated up to 6 years earlier were invited for a follow-up examination (n = 23). Two implants were placed bilaterally and one implant anteriorly in a tripod pattern. All patients underwent a clinical and radiological examination and completed questionnaires related to their experiences and satisfaction with the reconstructions. The prosthesis and implants were examined for adverse biological or technical aspects. Patient satisfaction and quality of life outcomes were collected using a self-reported Denture Satisfaction Scale and OHIP-20. Statistical analyses were limited to descriptive statistics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-one of 23 invited participants consented to participate. We report in this study the outcomes of the study participants who had received their implants more than 2 years ago (n = 12). None of their 36 implants gave any indications of mobility or tenderness upon percussion. Suppuration was observed on one implant. Probing around the implants caused no (53%) or minor bleeding (47%). The incidence of adverse biological and technical events was near non-existent. The rates of replacement of male attachments varied, as did any changes of male attachment retention force. All participants described the task of insertion and removal of the prosthesis as unproblematic. The marginal bone loss ranged between 0 and 5.3 mm. The OHIP-20 and the Denture Satisfaction Questionnaire scores were high.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results in this clinical study are positive and promising. Admittedly, the study design is purely retrospective and observational with a small participant cohort, so the technical solution of placing three implants in the edentulous maxilla to retain a removable prosthesis should be appraised further in more controlled studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: Arild
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mo
authors.affiliation: Department of Prosthetic Dentistry and Oral Function, Institute of Clinical Dentistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hjortsjö
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Institute of Clinical Dentistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Heming
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Olsen-Bergem
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway. asbjorn.jokstad@uit.no.
authors.forename: Asbjørn
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5902-4520
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jokstad
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003781:Denture Retention; D003828:Denture, Overlay / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007575:Jaw, Edentulous; D008297:Male; D008437:Maxilla; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies
keywords: dentures; edentulous; follow-up studies; patient satisfaction; quality of life; retrospective studies; self report; titanium