Comparing patient-reported outcomes and experiences among static, dynamic computer-aided, and conventional freehand...

The purpose of this study was to compare patient-reported outcomes and experiences (PROs and PREs) among three techniques of dental implant placement, including (a) conventional freehand, (b) dynamic, and (c) static computer-aided implant surgery (CAIS).

Ninety patients were randomly assigned to have dental implant placed with one of the three protocols. Participants were asked to fill in a series of self-administered questionnaires assessing (1) preoperative expectations, (2) postoperative healing events during the first week after surgery, and (3) experiences and overall satisfaction with the procedures at 2 weeks. Differences within the groups were analyzed by Wilcoxson signed-rank test. Kruskal-Wallis test was used for comparisons among the three groups.

Eighty-eight patients completed the study. Patients' expectations on chewing difficulty, the postoperative experience of duration of pain, speaking limitations, and impact on routine activities were significantly different among groups (p = 0.04, 0.01, 0.038, and 0.046, respectively). Overall, patients appeared to significantly underestimate the duration of postoperative pain (p = 0.035) and swelling (p = 0.001). No significant difference in magnitude of postoperative pain, swelling, and painkiller consumption was found among the groups. The short-term functional limitations after surgery were deemed acceptable by most participants and 89% were satisfied by the overall procedure.

Surgical placement of dental implant with conventional freehand, static, and dynamic CAIS techniques did not result in any difference in the level of postoperative pain and swelling, and appeared to lead to equal levels of satisfaction as expressed by the patients postoperatively.