AUGTHUN M.,Jansen V.K, Richter E.J., SPlEKERMANN H. (Department of Prosthodontics, University of Aachen)
The assessment of implant success is usually determined by survival rates of longitudinal observed implants. Peri-implant bone loss and soft tissue inflammation are usually not considered as criteria for implant success.
The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a correlation between peri-implant parameters and various levels of peri-implant bone loss.
For this purpose 142 patients with a. total of 303 IMZ-implants placed in the edentulous mandible were selected. These patients were observed in a longitudinal study over a period of ten years in the Department of Prosthodontics of the University of Aachen. The implants were divided in three different groups depending on the level of peri-implant bone loss. The first group exhibited only minor bone loss with values of < 2 mm bone loss. The bone loss of the second group was defined > 2 mm. The third group included implants with bone loss ranging between < 2 mm and > 2 mm. For these groups, the selected peri-implant parameters were analyzed for the five year follow up interval. Moreover, these parameters were analyzed for possible correlation.
The results showed that there was no significant difference between the different groups with regard to the peri-implant parameters.