Three‐year clinical performance of monolithic and partially veneered zirconia ceramic fixed partial dentures

Abstract

Objective: To compare the 3-year survival and success rates of monolithic (M) and partially veneered (PV) zirconia-fixed partial dentures (FPDs). Materials and Methods:Sixty-seven FPDs (n = 33 M-FPDs; n = 34 PV-FPDs) were placed in 51 patients (n = 23 males; mean age 61.5 years) and clinically followed up 1 week, 6 months, and then yearly after placement. One hundred per cent (100%) of M-FPDs and 70% of PV-FPDs were located in the posterior region. Ninety-two per cent (92%) of M-FPDs had three units, whereas 50% of PV-FPDs had more than three units.A facial veneer was present in 73% of the PV-FPDs units. Survival and success were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test (α = .05). Results: The mean observation period was 3.5 years for M-FPDs and 3.1 years for PV-FPDs. Most complications associated with FPDs were biological in nature. Ceramic defects occurred exclusively among PV-FPDs. Three-year survival was 96.7% for M-FPDs and 93.8% for PV-FPDs (P = .064). Three-year success was 93.8% for M-FPDs and 81.7% for PV-FPDs (P = .039). Conclusions: The use of both M-FPDs and PV-FPDs yielded clinically successful results over a mean period of 3 years.Clinical Significance: By using monolithic or facially veneered zirconia, ceramic FPDs could be fabricated which showed only a minimum of technical complications over the period of investigation without sacrificing adequate esthetics.

Prospective Clinical Evaluation of Posterior Monolithic Zirconia Fixed Partial Dentures Using a Complete Digital Workflow: Two‐Year Follow‐Up

“…The studies mainly focused on tooth‐supported posterior crowns, reporting survival rates at 1 to 3.5 years follow‐up in the range of 91.5% to 100%, 35,36,51,53,55–57 and one study reported a survival rate of 76.9% that could be due to the inclusion of patients with bruxism and because monolithic zirconia restorations are stiff and unable to absorb stresses 54 . Nevertheless, studies on posterior second‐generation monolithic zirconia FPDs are scarce, reporting a survival rate ranging from 96.7% to 100%, and consistent with the findings of the study 54,58,59 …”

Clinical Performance of Posterior Inlay‐Retained and Wing‐Retained Monolithic Zirconia Resin‐Bonded Fixed Partial Dentures: Stage One Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial

“…One problem identified in the study is the opacity of the monolithic material, which led to a reduction in the FDI scores for “color match and translucency.” Clinically good values were nonetheless still achieved, and top scores for the criterion “patient's view of esthetics” suggest that this probably did not affect patient acceptance. This is also suggested by studies on monolithic zirconia single crowns and FPDs, in which patients usually awarded top scores for restoration appearance, whereas dentists were more critical of the esthetic outcome 38,39 …”

“…The continual development of zirconia RBFPDs toward a fully monolithic design is likely to further improve the prognosis of this type of restoration 27 . Not only does this design have the potential to eliminate chipping problems, 38,39 but it also enables the application of delicate preparation geometries and thus the use of retentively prepared adhesive wings as anchoring elements, as an alternative to inlays.…”

Effect of Sintering Time on The Marginal and Internal Fit of Monolithic Zirconia Crowns Containing 3-4 Mol% Y2O3

“…and reduced cost and time for the production compared with porcelain-fused-tozirconia [8]. Although the monolithic approach is not new, monolithic Y-TZP posterior restorations have a signi cant advantage due to their high fracture resistance [9,10].…”