ITI Titanium Plasma-Sprayed Screw Implants in the Treatment of Edentulous Mandibles: A Follow-up Study of 39 Patients

The outcomes of 153 ITI titanium plasma-sprayed screw implants were studied in 39 patients. Four implants were placed in the edentulous mandible between the mental foramina and used as support for a denture prosthesis. Thirteen implants in six patients had been lost during the follow-up time of 3 to 10 years (mean 5.6 years). The mean annual bone resorption was 0.25 mm (SD 0.29 mm; range 0 to 1.37 mm). Bone loss was smaller in patients with prosthetic loading applied within 7 postoperative days than in those with delayed prosthetic treatment. No evidence of bone loss was seen around 37 (26.4%) implants. The cumulative and overall success rates for titanium plasma-sprayed implants were 80.8% and 91.5%, respectively. The corresponding figures for the patients were 86.8% and 94.9%. Keywords: bone resorption, edentulous mandible, oral implantology