Quality of Life for Patients Who Wear Conventional Complete Dentures or Implant-Retained Dentures

الملخص

Edentulousness and the wearing of complete denture may have an impact on overall quality of life. Individuals may
have significant problems with function as well as a compromised appearance. However, there are also psychosocial
consequences for some patients. Continuous resorption of alveolar bone decreases denture support, retention and
stability. This in turn leads to complaints about pain, instability of dentures and an inability to chew hard or tough
foods.
The principal aim of this paper was to make a comparison on quality of life outcomes between treatment with
conventional complete dentures and implant-retained overdentures in elderly patients. The articles published in
English language from 1980 to January 2010 were identified from the National Library of Medicine’s Pub Med
Web site. Papers that did not focus entirely on a comparison of patient satisfaction between complete denture and
over denture therapy were excluded.
Among the 151 articles found in the initial search, 14 met the inclusion criteria. This included 10 randomized
controlled trials (RCTs) and 3 prospective and one cohort study. Most of the articles stated the superiority of
the mandibular implant-retained overdenture therapy over the conventional complete denture regarding patient
satisfaction and quality of life. Few studies showed a significant improvement in OHRQoL after the provision of a
new set of conventional complete dentures.
A review of the literature on quality of construction of conventional complete dentures suggested that there is
only a weak correlation with outcome. There are many factors that can be related to satisfaction with complete
dentures. These include anatomical factors (denture bearing area), physiological factors (salivary flow), social
factors, psychological factors as well as possible factors related to denture quality