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Prognostic parameters contributing to palatal implant failures: a long-term survival analysis of 239 patients
Britta A Jung1, Martin Kunkel1, Peter Göllner1
1Department of Orthodontics, University Medical Center Mainz, Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial-Plastic Surgery, Ruhr University of Bochum, Bochum, GermanyPrivate Practice, Berne, SwitzerlandDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Medical Center Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
Objective:
To evaluate the demographic, radiological and therapeutic parameters that influence the overall clinical performance of palatal implants subjected to orthodontic loading.
Patients And Methods:
The data of all patients who had received an orthodontic palatal implant for skeletal anchorage between January 1998 and December 2007 were reviewed retrospectively. The primary endpoint was the implant loss. The following parameters were assessed by univariate (log-rank test) and multivariate (Cox's regression) analysis: (a) age and gender, (b) vertical bone height along the prospective implant axis, (c) surgeon's experience and (d) implant type.
Results:
Two-hundred and thirty-nine palatal implants were inserted in patients aged between 10 and 65 years. In all, 11/239 (4.6%) implants were lost: nine during the healing phase and two under functional loading. On univariate analysis, "surgeon's experience" was associated with a better implant survival and vice versa (P=0.0005; log-rank test). The significance of "surgeon's experience" was confirmed by Cox's regression analysis (P=0.001; Wald test). All other parameters had no impact on implant loss.
Conclusions:
The survival probability of palatal implants is not related to demographic and radiological parameters. Implant losses mainly occurred early in the healing phase of the palatal implant. According to our data, "surgeon's experience" is the cornerstone of palatal implant success.