Immediate Loading of Conical Connection Implants: Up-to-2-Year Retrospective Clinical and Radiologic Study

To report the up-to-2-year outcomes of the immediately loaded novel variable-thread tapered implant with an internal conical connection and built-in platform shifting.

Sixty-four partially and completely edentulous patients were referred to two private centers for implant treatments between December 2010 and June 2012. Clinical and radiographic parameters were assessed retrospectively; the outcomes were implant and prosthetic failure, marginal bone remodeling, and complications.

One hundred forty-eight NobelReplace Conical Connection implants were placed in both postextraction sockets (n = 67) and healed sites (n = 81). One maxillary postextractive implant failed before the definitive prosthesis delivery, accounting for a cumulative success rate of 99.3%. No definitive prostheses failed. A mean marginal bone loss (MBL) of 0.42 ± 1.16 mm and 0.71 ± 1.53 mm was observed between implant placement and the 1-year (n = 147) and 2-year (n = 74) follow-up periods, respectively. In the postextraction sites, the mean MBL was 0.28 ± 0.39 mm and 0.69 ± 0.75 mm at the 1-year (n = 66) and 2-year (n = 50) follow-up periods; in the healed sites, the mean MBL was 0.51 ± 0.88 mm (n = 81) and 0.62 ± 0.80 mm (n = 24), respectively. At the 2-year follow-up session (n = 74), bleeding on probing was 8.3%, and the plaque score was 15.7%. No technical complications were observed. One biologic complication (0.8%) was reported.

Within the limitations of this study and the relatively short follow-up, the immediately loaded NobelReplace Conical Connection implants demonstrated good treatment outcomes with regard to implant and prosthetic survival rate, MBL, and soft tissue conditions, in both postextraction and healed sites.