Maxillary overdentures retained by splinted and unsplinted implants: A retrospective study

The purpose of this retrospective study was to evaluate the clinical perfor mance of and patients' satisfaction with maxillary overdentures retained by splinted and unsplinted implants. Patients who had been treated with maxil lary implant-retained overdentures because of functional problems with conv entional complete dentures were identified and invited to participate in th e study. A total of 16 patients fulfilled the enrollment criteria and agree d to participate. Eleven patients were treated with bar-retained overdentur es with 3 to 6 clips (mean follow-up 32 months), and 5 patients wore overde ntures retained by 2 to 6 ball attachments (mean follow-up 54 months). All subjects were satisfied with their prostheses, and most subjects experience d improvement in their oral function after treatment with implant-retained overdentures. At the time of clinical examination, 92% (n = 77) of the 84 i mplants placed were functioning satisfactorily The cumulative survival rate for the implants after 72 months was 90%. Loss of bone support correlated with peri-implant probing depth (r = 0.29; P < .02). No differences in mean bone loss between the subjects with ball-retained or bar-retained overdent ures were found. The presence of plaque or peri-implant bleeding was not as sociated with the type of attachment.