Treatment times for posterior resin-bonded bridges

In a longitudinal clinical trial the treatment times needed for the fabrication of Posterior Resin-Bonded Bridges (PRBB's) were recorded and analyzed. From a total of 200 PRBB's with different designs and retention systems, 152 were selected for this analysis. The selected bridges were made by 12 operators: 3 university staff members and 9 general practitioners. The mean treatment time for PRBB's was 80 min. When posterior composite restorations were made in the abutment teeth, the mean treatment time increased by 25% up to 100 min. From the factors which were considered to influence the treatment time, a significant effect was found for "restorations", "operator" and "experience of the operator". The other factors considered, such as "tooth preparation", "retention system", "isolation method", "occlusion", and "location", showed no detectable effect on the treatment time. The results of this study are considered to be useful in further cost-benefit analyses.