Zirconia-based single-tooth restorations are reliable alternative materials to metal-based restorations with favorable outcomes suggests a new study published in the Journal of Evidence-Based Dental Practice.
The primary aim was to investigate the survival rate of zirconia versus metal abutments, and the secondary aim was the clinical outcomes of all-ceramic versus metal-ceramic crowns on single-tooth implants. Patients with tooth agenesis who participated in a previously published prospective clinical study with a three-year follow-up were recalled after five years. Biological variables included survival and success rate of implants, marginal bone level, modified Plaque and Sulcus Bleeding Index and biological complications. Technical variables included restoration survival rate, marginal adaptation and technical complications. The aesthetic outcome of crowns and peri-implant mucosa in addition to patient-reported outcomes were recorded. Descriptive analysis, linear mixed model for quantitative data, or generalized linear mixed model for ordinal categorical data were applied; significance was set to 0.05.

Results: Fifty-three patients (mean age 32.4 years), with 89 implants participated in the 5-year examination. The implants supported 50 zirconia abutments with 50 all-ceramic (AC) crowns and 39 metal abutments with 29 metal-ceramic (MC) and 10 AC crowns. Zirconia-based single-tooth restorations are reliable alternative materials to metal-based restorations with favorable biological and aesthetic outcomes, and few technical complications.
Reference:
Mandana Hosseini, Nils Worsaae, Klaus Gotfredsen. The survival rate of implant-supported, single-tooth restorations based on zirconia or metal abutment in patients with tooth agenesis: A 5-year prospective clinical study. Journal of Evidence-Based Dental Practice. 2024,101970, ISSN 1532-3382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebdp.2024.101970.(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1532338224000022)
Keywords:
Zirconia-based, single-tooth restorations, alternative materials, metal-based restorations, favourable outcomes, Journal of Evidence-Based Dental Practice, survival rate; dental implant; Single-Tooth; dental abutments; dental crowns; zirconium dioxide, Mandana Hosseini, Nils Worsaae, Klaus Gotfredsen