Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the masticatory efficiency of mini dental implants (MDIs) retained lower complete denture patients by subjective and objective method. Thirty-three patients (10 males and 23 females, mean age 67.50 ± 7.66 years) who had functional problems of their lower complete dentures (L-CD) were selected according to the criteria of the study. All patients received 4 MDIs in the mandible to retain their L-CD. The masticatory efficiency were evaluated by subjective and objective method 3 times; Test 1: after using lower complete denture at least 3 months before MDIs placement; Test 2: after loading lower complete denture 1 month and Test 3: after loading lower complete denture 3 months. The subjective evaluation using the four-point rating scale questionnaire about food chewing performance on 14 common food types, determined as the “perceived chewing ability score” (PCAS). The objective evaluation using two-colored (red/white) wax cube analysis, calculated as the “percentage of chewing ability” (PCA). The MDIs survival rate within 3 months follow up after loading L-CD was 96.97%. By subjective evaluation, the median of the PCAS was 20±5.93 in Test 1 and increased to 40±2.03 and 41±1.82 in Test 2 and 3, respectively. By objective evaluation, the mean of the PCA was 19.22±3.75 in Test 1 and increased to 29.61±4.27 and 31.02±3.70 in Test 2 and 3, respectively. The influence of age, gender, general health status, type of upper prosthesis, the mandibular bone height and width had no effect on the outcomes of this study. The results demonstrated a statistically significant difference (P≤.001) in the mean scores of both evaluations between before and after MDIs retained L-CD treatment. It was found that all lower complete denture wearers improve their masticatory efficiency after treatment with the MDIs by both subjective and objective evaluations. This could be suggested that minimally invasive treatment of mini dental implants can be optimal treatment option for elderly to solve the problems of denture instability, lead to improve masticatory efficiency and quality of life.
