Purpose: This study aimed to examine clinical and patient-centered outcomes of resilient stud and stress-free bar attachments used for immediately loaded implants supporting mandibular overdentures.
Materials and methods: Thirty edentulous patients with sufficient bone mesial and distal to the mental foramen received new dentures. The patients were randomly assigned into two groups. After 3 months of adaptation, four implants were placed in the canine and second premolar areas of the mandible using computer-guided surgery and the flapless surgical approach. Overdentures were connected immediately to the implants using either resilient stud (Locator) or stress-free implant bar (SFI-Bar) attachments. Marginal resorption of bone, plaque and gingival indices, pocket depth, and implant stability were evaluated for both groups at baseline (prosthesis delivery) and 6 and 12 months thereafter. Implant survival and patient satisfaction were calculated after 12 months.
Results: For both groups, marginal bone loss (P < .043), plaque scores (P < .001), and probing depth (P < .002) increased significantly with time. SFI-Bar recorded lower marginal bone loss (P = .048) and higher plaque scores (P = .021) and probing depth (P = .001) than Locator after 12 months of denture insertion. The implant survival was 96.6% and 98.3% for Locator and SFI-Bar, respectively. No significant difference was found in the survival rate between groups (P = .56). Locator showed significantly higher general satisfaction, satisfaction with retention, comfort, and cleaning of overdentures compared with SFI-Bar (P < .001).
Conclusion: Within the limits of this investigation, both resilient stud and stress-free bar attachments can be used successfully with mandibular four-implant overdentures subjected to an immediate loading protocol. However, studs may be preferred regarding peri-implant soft tissue health, patient satisfaction with retention, cleaning, and comfort, and stress-free bar attachments could be more effective in terms of marginal bone preservation.
