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Does a Prosthodontist Spend More Time Providing Mandibular Two-Implant Overdentures than Conventional Dentures?
Yoshiaki Takanashi, DDS, PhDa, John R. Penrod, PhDb, Antoine Chehade, DDS, MSc, FRCD(C)c, Esa Klemetti, DDS, PhDd, Andre Savard, MSce, James P. Lund, BDS, PhDf, Jocelyne S. Feine, DDS, HDRg
Pages: 397–403 PMID: 12170856
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Purpose: In this article, the time taken by a prosthodontist to fabricate and maintain
mandibular overdentures retained by two implants and conventional dentures is
compared. Materials and Methods: Sixty edentulous patients between the ages of 65 and
75 completed a randomized clinical trial. All received new maxillary conventional
dentures and either a mandibular conventional denture (n = 30) or a two-implant
overdenture on ball attachments (n = 30). The time spent by the prosthodontist and the
number of visits required for treatment, including both scheduled and unscheduled visits,
were recorded for each patient from preliminary impressions to 6 months following
delivery. Data from the two groups were compared using Mann-Whitney U tests. Results:
The prosthodontist spent a mean total time of 296 minutes in treating an implant
overdenture patient and 282 minutes on a conventional denture patient during the period
from preliminary impressions to the 6-month follow-up. The mean numbers of
appointments were 10.1 (implant group) and 10.8 (conventional group). These differences
were not significant. Conclusion: Although additional knowledge is required to treat
patients with implant prostheses, the time required by the prosthodontist to provide twoimplant
mandibular overdentures with ball attachments was not significantly different than
the time needed for conventional denture treatment. Int J Prosthodont 2002;15:397–403.
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