OBJECTIVE: To systematically assess survival, failure, and complication rates of all-ceramic implant-supported monolithic and micro-veneered FDPs (i-FDPs) in partially/completely edentulous patients compared to veneered restorations. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An electronic search identified prospective clinical studies on all-ceramic i-FDPs with at least one inter-implant pontic and a minimal follow-up of 1 year, with no restrictions in language and publication date. RESULTS: Only studies on posterior 3-4-unit and full-arch i-FDPs were identified. Twelve studies assessing monolithic, fully veneered, and micro-veneered restorations were included. Regardless of veneering design, the meta-analysis indicated a 3-year success rate of 89.36% for 3-4-unit and 75.56% for full-arch i-FDPs, and an estimated 3-year survival rate of 98.64% and 96.45%, respectively. Analyzing veneering design influence was feasible only for 3-4-unit i-FDPs. Monolithic and micro-veneered 3-4-unit restorations showed significantly lower chipping incidence than fully veneered ones (p 1000 MPa). No conclusions can be drawn for multilayer zirconia or other ceramics.
Bishti et al. (Sat,) studied this question.