A.P. Slagter

Bite Forces with Mandibular Implant-retained Overdentures

Sensitivity or pain of the mucoperiosteum covering the mandibular edentulous ridge is often thought to limit bite forces in complete-denture wearers. Therefore, bite forces with mandibular implant-retained overdentures may depend on the degree of implant support. This study analyzed the effects of different degrees of support for the mandibular denture on bite forces measured four years after denture treatment as part of a randomized controlled clinical trial. All subjects had received new maxillary dentures and (1) mainly implant-borne overdentures on a transmandibular implant (TMI), (2) mucosa-borne overdentures on two cylindric permucosal IMZ implants, or (3) new conventional dentures in the mandible. Fifty-three women and 15 men (mean age, 59.1 yrs; range, 41 to 77) participated in this trial. Both unilateral and bilateral bite forces were recorded at different positions with a miniature strain gauge transducer and a mechanical bite fork, respectively. The subjects were asked to bite at three force levels. Results indicated that women had significantly lower maximum bite forces than men. Persons with mandibular implant-retained overdentures had significantly higher unilateral and bilateral maximum bite forces than complete-denture wearers. However, bite forces did not differ between the mainly implant-borne (TMI) and mucosa-implant-borne (IMZ) implant systems. Therefore, it appears that differences in support for the mandibular overdenture by dental implants are not reflected in bite force capabilities.

Comminution of Food with Mandibular Implant-retained Overdentures:

When complete-denture wearers are treated with from four to six implants and mandibular implant-borne prostheses, masticatory performance improves. No significant improvement has been observed with two implants and implant-mucosa-borne overdentures, suggesting that the masticatory performance of edentulous subjects depends on the degree of support for their mandibular prostheses by implants or alveolar mucosa. To verify this hypothesis, we studied, in a randomized clinical trial, the comminution of an artificial test food during mastication. The trial involved the provision of a new maxillary denture and either a new conventional mandibular denture, a mandibular overdenture retained by two permucosal cylindric implants through a single bar-clip attachment, or a mandibular overdenture retained by a transmandibular implant through five clips on a triple-bar construction with cantilever extensions. In comparison with the subjects wearing mandibular implant-retained overdentures, the subjects with conventional complete dentures needed between 1.5 and 3.6 times more chewing strokes to achieve an equivalent reduction in particle size. No differences in masticatory performance and efficiency were found between the subjects who had received two permucosal cylindric implants and those who had received a transmandibular implant. The results suggest that the increased retention and stability of the mandibular denture, rather than the degree of support by implants or alveolar mucosa, determine the wearers ability to comminute food during mastication.