Statement of problem: Immediate occlusal loading of dental implants in the edentulous mandible has proven to be an effective, reliable, and predictable treatment protocol. However, there is limited long-term data available in the literature, when an electroeroded definitive cast-titanium fixed prosthesis is used for this treatment protocol.
Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical effectiveness of dental implants (Astra Tech Dental, Mölndal, Sweden) in the edentulous mandible immediately loaded with an electroeroded cast-titanium screw-retained fixed prosthesis.
Materials and methods: Forty-five patients received five implants each in the interforaminal area. All the implants were inserted with torque up to 40 Ncm and the distal implants were distally tilted approximately 20 to 30 degrees to minimize the length of posterior cantilevers. Implants were loaded within 48 hours of placement with an acrylic resin-titanium screw-retained prosthesis fabricated by electroerosion.
Results: Two of the 225 inserted implants failed after 3 and 16 months of healing, respectively, with a cumulative survival rate of 99.1% and a prosthetic survival rate of 97.8%.
Conclusion: Immediate loading of tilted dental implants inserted in the edentulous mandible with a screw-retained titanium definitive prosthesis fabricated with electrical discharge machining provide reliable and predictable results.
© 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.