A clinical pilot study on overdentures retained by two unsplinted narrow-diameter implants- oral health-related quality of life and masticatory function.

Purpose: This prospective clinical pilot study aimed to evaluate oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) and both objective and subjective masticatory function following treatment with implant-supported overdentures on two reduced-diameter titanium-zirconium implants in the edentulous maxilla and mandible.

Methods: Ten edentulous patients received two implants each in the maxillary and mandibular canine regions. Implant-supported overdentures were placed after a conventional healing period. Patients completed a shortened form of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-G14) and rated their chewing ability on a visual analog scale (VAS) at baseline and after 6, 12, 24, and 36 months. A standardized masticatory function test assessed objective chewing function. Statistical analysis comprised descriptive analysis and changes or differences in means were analyzed using different tests (Wilcoxon signed rank test, Friedman test).

Results: Significant increases in subjective ability to eat various foods were noted after six months (P ≤.05). The mean total OHIP score decreased significantly from 33.2 at baseline to 4.7 at the 36-month follow-up. Objective masticatory efficacy showed significant improvement immediately after treatment (P =.005), with effects consistent over 36 months. At that time, six maxillary implants had been lost, while no mandibular implants had failed.

Conclusions: In this clinical pilot study, the rehabilitation of a completely edentulous maxilla and mandible with two implants and a removable overdenture significantly enhanced OHRQoL and both subjective and objective masticatory ability over an observation period of 36 months.