FAILURE OF DENTAL BRIDGES .3. EFFECT OF SOME TECHNICAL FACTORS

In this investigation 156 dental bridges, inserted for 132 individuals , were evaluated. Three-unit bridges accounted for the majority of fix ed appliances surveyed. The results revealed that the mean longevity o f the failed bridges was 6.1 years. There was no relation between the number of units in a bridge and its duration of service. The results a lso revealed that metal-ceramic retainers were the most commonly used in the series but exhibited the shortest duration of successful servic e. Of 325 abutments, 11.4% were endodontically treated and 10.8% of th ose were associated with periapical lesions. Periapical lesions were a ssociated with 4.2% of the abutments presumed vital prior to the study .