Covariates relating to implant failure and marginal bone loss of a novel triangular neck-implant placed by post-graduate students: a 1-year prospective cohort study

Abstract

(1) Background: Most of the clinical literature dealing with dental implants has been issued by experienced teams working either in university settings or in private practice. The purpose of this study was to identify contributing covariates to implant failure and marginal bone loss (MBL) at the 1-year follow-up of a novel triangular-neck implant design when placed by inexperienced post-graduate students. (2) Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted on study participants eligible for implant placement at the UIC (International University of Catalonia), Barcelona, Spain. Implant failure rate and contributors to implant failure and MBL were investigated among 24 implant and patient variables. (3) Results: One hundred and twenty implants (V3, MIS) were placed and rehabilitated by the students. The mean insertion torque was 37.1 Ncm. Survival and success rates were 97.5% and 96.7%, respectively. Implants placed in patients with smoking habits displayed a tendency of higher failure risk (OR = 5.31, p = 0.17) when compared to non-smokers. The mean (SD) MBL was 0.51 (0.44) mm. Gender significantly affected the MBL (p = 0.020). Bleeding on probing (BoP) on the buccal sites proved to be a good predictor of proximal MBL (p = 0.030). (4) Conclusions: The survival and success rates of the V3 triangular-neck implant placed by inexperienced post-graduate students at the 1-year follow-up were high and similar to the ones published in the literature by experienced teams on other implants.