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Abstract This study aimed to compare implant stabilities between the immediate and early loaded, immediately placed bone‐level tapered dental implants in the maxilla and to evaluate marginal bone loss (MBL), oral health‐related quality of life (OHRQoL), and patient satisfaction at a 2‐year follow‐up. A pilot, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial was conducted on 24 maxillary failing dentition patients. The bone‐level tapered implants of 12 patients were immediately loaded with temporary restorations, while the other 12 patients did not receive any kind of temporization. Implant‐supported screw‐retained complete porcelain‐fused‐to‐metal prostheses were delivered to all patients in the seventh postoperative week. The insertion torque values of implants assigned to the immediate and early loading groups were 33.0 ± 4.87 and 29.26 ± 8.31 Ncm, respectively. The dynamics of implant stability changes from implant placement up to a 2‐year follow‐up were similar for both groups (Penguin®, p = 0.268; Ostell®, p = 0.552), while the MBL was at submillimeter level. The cumulative implant survival rate was 91.80% for immediately loaded implants and 97.22% for early loaded implants, without significant difference ( p = 0.162). The total score on the Oral Health Impact Profile questionnaire significantly decreased over time in both groups, indicating improvement in OHRQoL ( p < 0.001), and the high level of patient satisfaction remained after 2 years of function regardless of a loading protocol. Both loading protocols, immediate and early, of six immediately placed bone‐level tapered dental implants are an adequate treatment choice for fixed rehabilitation of the maxillary failing dentition.
Aleksa et al. (Wed,) studied this question.