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Published on: April 28, 2023
Clinical performance of 3D printed porous titanium dental implants supporting single crowns: A 2-year retrospective
Carlo Mangano1, Henriette Lerner2, Francesco Guido Mangano3
1Department of Dental Sciences, San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
Objectives:
To evaluate the 2-year clinical, radiographic, and prosthetic outcomes of 3D printed porous titanium implants supporting single crowns.
Methods:
This retrospective study included 70 patients (31 males, 39 females; mean age 58.4 ± 12.1 years) rehabilitated with 85 3D printed porous titanium implants supporting single crowns. Forty-six implants (54.1%) were placed in the maxilla and 39 (45.9%) in the mandible; 77 implants (90.6%) were inserted in healed ridges and 8 (9.4%) in post-extraction sockets. Clinical, prosthetic, and radiographic outcomes were assessed after 2 years of functional loading. Outcome measures included implant survival, biologic and prosthetic complications, and marginal bone loss (MBL). Descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were performed with a significance level of p < 0.05.
Results:
At the 2-year follow-up, 84 of 85 implants remained functional, resulting in a cumulative survival rate of 98.8%. One implant failed because of peri‑implantitis, while no additional biologic complications were observed. Two prosthetic complications (2.4%) occurred, consisting of implant-abutment connection loss in bruxist patients. Mean MBL increased from 0.65 ± 0.43 mm (95% CI: 0.56-0.74 mm) at 1 year to 0.78 ± 0.50 mm (95% CI: 0.67-0.89 mm) at 2 years, representing a statistically significant change (mean difference: 0.13 mm; 95% CI: 0.07-0.19 mm; p < 0.001). Healed sites exhibited lower MBL than post-extraction sockets, and mandibular implants showed lower MBL than maxillary implants; however, these differences did not reach statistical significance (p > 0.05).
Conclusions:
3D printed porous titanium implants demonstrated excellent short-term clinical performance, high survival, minimal complication rates, and stable peri‑implant bone levels after 2 years of functional loading, supporting their use for single-tooth implant rehabilitation.
Clinical Relevance:
3D printed porous titanium implants may represent a biologically advanced approach to implant design, potentially improving osseointegration through controlled open-cell architecture.