Profilometric changes of peri-implant tissues over 5 years: A randomized controlled trial comparing a one- and...

To assess the profilometric changes of the buccal soft tissues between baseline and 5 years of loading using a one- and two-piece dental implant system.

Sixty patients randomly received dental implants of either a two-piece type (BRA) or a one-piece type (STM). Casts were obtained at baseline (after crown insertion), at the 1-year and at the 5-year follow-up. Stereolithography files were obtained from the casts for digital superimposition. One implant and the contralateral natural tooth were selected for the analysis. Thirty-three patients (BRA = 16; STM = 17) were included. Measurements included changes for crown height (CH) and estimated soft tissue thickness, as well as the profilometric change at the implant and the tooth site. Nonparametric methods were applied for the statistical analyses and medians and quartiles presented.

The BRA group lost -0.39 mm and the STM group lost -0.40 mm of volume between baseline and the 5-year follow-up at the implant site (p > 0.05). The tooth site lost -0.18 mm (BRA) and -0.12 mm (STM) (p > 0.05). Volume differences between implants and teeth amounted to -0.05 mm (baseline to 1 year) and -0.25 mm (baseline to 5 years) for BRA, while for STM, the values were 0.03 mm (baseline to 1 year) and -0.16 mm (baseline to 5 years). The changes for implant CH at 1 and 5 years of follow-up amounted 0.10 and 0.09 mm (BRA) and to 0.03 and 0.22 mm (STM). The changes in tissue thickness at 1 and 5 years in the BRA group amounted to -0.28 and -0.66 mm at 1 mm, -0.21 and -0.46 mm at 3 mm, and -0.32 and -0.45 mm at 5 mm, respectively. The changes in the STM group amounted to -0.15 and -0.54 mm at 1 mm, -0.24 and -0.48 mm at 3 mm, and -0.32 and -0.57 mm at 5 mm, respectively. No significantly different medians were observed.

Minimal profilometric and linear changes occurred at implant sites between baseline and 5 years, between implant and tooth sites and between the two implant systems.