Purpose: The goal of this study was to assess the peri-implant condition, peri-implant bone loss (PBL), and complication rates of short dental implant-supported splinted crowns (SDI-SCs) and non-splinted crowns (SDI-NSCs) in the maxillary premolar-molar region.
Materials and methods: Patients who had short implants placed near their maxillary sinuses were evaluated. Both patient satisfaction and presence of any technical complication, e.g. porcelain wear and chipping, loss of retention and loosening of the abutment, fixture or screw, were noted. The peri-implant plaque index (PIPI), probing depth (PIPD), bleeding on probing (PIBP), and peri-implant bone loss (PBL) were evaluated. To assess the impact of prosthesis type and SDI placement on technical problems, a log-rank test was computed. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: A total of 72 patients agreed to be followed-up, showing a mean follow-up time of 3.1 years. Ninty-five implants in total (55 SDI-SCs, and 40 SDI-NSCs) with moderately rough surfaces were evaluated. The average PBL score for implant and patients was 1.27 (0.02-3.97) and 1.25 (0.03-4.41), respectively. More technical complications were observed with single crowns than with splinted crowns. There were no statistically significant differences in the peri-implant parameters between SDI-SCs and SDI-NSCs (p > 0.05). PBL at molar sites was substantially higher than at premolar sites (p = 0.048). Sixty patients (83.3%) were satisfied with the appearance of the crowns, while 57 patients (79.1%) were satisfied with the crowns' performance.
Conclusion: The peri-implant conditions, bone levels, technical complication rates and patient satisfaction were comparable between the SDI-SCs and SDI-NSCs. However, implants placed in the molar sites had statistically significantly greater bone loss in comparison to those at the premolar sites.
Keywords: patient satisfaction; short implants; single crowns; splinted crowns.