Clinical outcomes of using a prosthetic protocol to rehabilitate tissue-level implants with a convergent collar in the esthetic zone: A 3-year prospective study

Abstract

Statement of problemWhether increasing the space for peri-implant soft tissues by using implant systems with conical or convergent transmucosal components would improve tissue stability and esthetics is unclear. PurposeThe purpose of this prospective clinical study was to evaluate the clinical and esthetic outcomes of using tissue-level implants with a convergent collar in the esthetic zone that had been rehabilitated following the biological oriented preparation technique (BOPT) approach after a 3-year follow-up period. Material and methodsSixteen participants with at least 1 nonrestorable tooth in the maxillary anterior region or with congenitally missing maxillary lateral incisors were enrolled, and tissue-level implants with a convergent collar were inserted 3 months after extraction. The implants were restored with cemented single crowns designed according to the BOPT protocol. Bone resorption and the pink esthetic score were evaluated over a 3-year period. ResultsFifteen participants (mean age: 54.6 years) were evaluated over the 3-year period (total: 16 implants). One participant with 1 implant relocated dropped out of the study. The 3-year implant cumulative survival rate was 100%. The mean ±standard deviation bone-level change was 0.071 ±0.11 mm. The mean pink esthetic score was 8.5 ±1.59, range 4-10. ConclusionsThe use of the BOPT protocol to restore tissue-level implants with a convergent collar achieved good esthetic results and maintained stable soft and hard peri-implant tissues.