This study evaluated marginal bone loss and prosthetic complications associated with single implant-retained mandibular overdentures (1-IODs) with locator attachments. The 1-IOD was placed in the mandibular midline by using a conventional loading protocol in 22 patients with an edentulous mandible. Marginal bone loss at the start of loading and 12 months postoperatively was assessed by radiographic and crestal bone evaluation. The crestal bone was defined as the distance between the customized abutment shoulder and the top of the bone, as indicated by probing. In addition, implant stability quotient and prosthetic complications were recorded. The cumulative implant survival rate was 95.5%. Median implant stability quotient remained greater than 80, and median radiographic bone loss was 0.56 mm. Crestal measurement showed a median crestal bone loss of 0.16, 0.43, 0.39, and 0.52 mm on the buccal, right, lingual, and left sides, respectively. Both radiographic and crestal bone loss values significantly differed between the start of implant loading and 12 months postoperatively (except on the buccal and lingual sides; P < 0.05). The need to replace the nylon insert was the most common complication. Conventional loading of a 1-IOD with a locator attachment resulted in a high survival rate, good implant stability, and acceptable marginal bone loss.
Materials and Methods
Study designTwenty-two patients (10 men, 12 women; age range 61-91 years) with an edentulous mandible were recruited at the Dental Hospital of Tokyo Medical and Dental University from October 2015 through March 2016. The study inclusion criteria were presence of an edentulous mandible for at least 6 months; sufficient bone height (≥13 mm) and width (≥6.1 mm) at the mandible midline; written and spoken Japanese skills adequate to respond to questionnaires; and age older than 50 years. Patients were excluded if they had a medical contraindication to implant surgery, were receiving bisphosphonate therapy at the time of the study, had a history of chemotherapy or radiation therapy to the head or neck, smoked >20 cigarettes a day, or had an infection, a psychiatric disorder, a temporomandibular disorder, dry mouth, or oral dyskinesia.The sample size required for this study was estimated by using 100-mm Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores for patient satisfaction, as described in the trial protocol of Kanazawa et al. [23]. Twenty participants were required for 80% power with a 2-sided alpha level of 0.05, when VAS scores were assumed to be normally distributed. Twenty-two participants were recruited, to allow for dropouts. The study protocol was approved by the