Within-subject Comparisons of Implant-supported Mandibular Prostheses: Psychometric Evaluation

Abstract

In a within-subject cross-over clinical trial, psychometric and functional measurements were taken while 15 completely edentulous subjects wore mandibular fixed prostheses and long-bar removable implant-supported prostheses. In this paper, the results of a psychometric assessment are presented. Eight subjects first received the fixed bridge and seven the removable type. After having worn a prosthesis for a minimum of two months, subjects responded to psychometric scales that measured their perceptions of various factors associated with prostheses. They also chewed test foods while masticatory activity was recorded. The prostheses were then changed and the procedures repeated. At the end of the study, patients were asked to choose the prosthesis that they wished to keep. Patients assigned significantly higher scores, on visual analogue scales, to both types of implant-supported prostheses than to their original conventional prostheses for all factors tested, including general satisfaction. However, no statistically significant differences between the two implant-supported prostheses were detected except for the difficulty of chewing carrot, apple, and sausage. For these foods, the fixed prostheses were rated higher. Subjects' responses to category scales were consistent with their responses to the visual analogue scales. These results suggest that, although patients find the fixed bridge to be significantly better for chewing harder foods, there is no difference in their general satisfaction with the two types of prostheses.

Oral health impact profile and prosthetic condition in edentulous patients rehabilitated with implant-supported overdentures and fixed prostheses

“…Generally, the conventional total prosthesis has been compared with one of these two types of total implant-supported prosthesis (23)(24)(25). Feine et al (26) and Grandmont et al (27) selected 15 patients, of whom 8 were initially treated with implantsupported fixed prostheses and 7 were given implantsupported overdentures (removable). After 2 months, patient perception of prosthesis utilization was assessed using the visual analogue scale (VAS) and the category scale (CAT), then the prostheses were changed and the procedures repeated.…”

Two‐center clinical trial of implant–retained mandibular overdentures versus complete dentures – chewing ability

“…However, both these studies have several limitations: the numbers of patients in these studies were small (27 versus 9), the selection of patients for treatment may have dif fered, treatment was not randomly as signed to the patients and no control group was included. The study of dm G r a n d m o n t et al (17) does not have these design flaws. In a cross-over clin ical trial patients assigned significantly higher scores to mandibular fixed pros theses as well as implant-retained man dibular ove rd en tu res with respect to chewing ability.…”

Comparison of patient′s satisfaction with implant-supported mandibular overdentures and complete dentures

“…After quantification, scores can be used to represent patient's satisfaction. [27] The framework of the questionnaire [ Figure 1] consisted of five main parameters.…”