Objective of work
It is unclear how long patients need to adapt to new dentures. This study assessed adaptation and five years of clinical use, comparing complete denture wearers (CDs) and mini-implant mandibular overdenture wearers opposing a maxillary CD (MDI-OD), based on oral health reported quality of life (OHRQoL) and orofacial esthetics (OES).
Material and Methods
A total of 36 subjects in the CD group (25 females) and 30 subjects in the MDI group (20 females) completed the 5-year study. All patients received new CDs, but in the MDI-OD group, four mini-implants were inserted interforaminally in the mandible before denture manufacture. Participants filled in the OHIP-EDENT and OES questionnaires one day after dentures’ delivery, on the 3
rd
, 8
th
, 15
th
, 30
th
day, and at the 1-, 3- and 5-year follow-up examinations. Statistical analysis comprised descriptive methods,
X
2
test, independent t-test, Friedman, and Mann-Whitney test.
Results and Conclusions
Both groups' adaptation to new dentures was completed within a month. The MDI-OD group had significantly better OHRQoL in all follow-ups except for the 3
rd
and 8
th
day, probably due to soreness and pain, the reason why the MDI-OD group had limitation in functioning in the first days after new dentures’ delivery. Already after the third year and at the fifth year, OHRQoL worsened (p<0.01) in both groups. However it was significantly more pronounced in the conventional CD wearers (p<0.01) than in the MDI-OD group. Orofacial esthetics was highly scored in both groups. The scores dropped down only after three years, equally in both groups.
Keywords
OHRQoL, OES, prospective study, complete dentures, mini-implants, adaptation
MeSH Terms
Complete Dentures; Dental Implants; Quality of Life; Dental Esthetics