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Development of a stable and healthy soft-tissue barrier around dental implants is key to long-term success of implant-supported prostheses. The novel two-piece abutment concept shifts the prosthetic interface to the soft-tissue level to protect bone interface/connective tissue during the healing phase and restorative procedures. This prospective study included 72 patients treated with 106 implants to support a single-tooth or a three-unit bridge restored with two-piece abutments. The evaluation included marginal bone level change (MBLC), implant and prosthetic survival, soft-tissue health including keratinized mucosa height and mucosal margin position, patient quality of life (QoL) and satisfaction, and clinician satisfaction and ease-of-use rating of the concept. Mean MBLC from implant placement to 1 year was -0.36 ± 1.26 mm ( n = 89), the 1-year implant and prosthetic survival rates were 97.1 and 96.7%, respectively, while keratinized mucosa height increased from 2.9 ± 1.2 mm at prosthetic delivery to 3.2 ± 1.3 mm, and mucosal margin migrated coronally by 0.49 ± 0.61 mm by 1 year. Patient satisfaction and QoL were high. Clinicians were satisfied with the esthetic and functional results and rated the concept as easy to use. In conclusion, the novel two-piece abutment concept promotes good peri-implant tissue health, while providing an easy-to-use workflow and high treatment satisfaction to both patients and clinicians.

Objectives: To compare clinical performance of a novel resorbable non-cross-linked collagen membrane (CXP) with a reference membrane (non-cross-linked resorbable membrane; BG) for simultaneous implant placement and guided bone regeneration (GBR) at dehisced single implant sites., Materials and Methods: Preliminary data from this randomized controlled trial were reported previously; this is the 12-month report. The primary outcome measure was defected height at 6 months post-GBR. Secondary outcomes included implant cumulative survival rate (CSR) and success rate since placement; bone level changes, pink esthetic score (PES), and patient satisfaction since definitive prosthesis delivery; patient quality of life since pretreatment; and the 1-year bleeding index. Non-parametric statistical analyses were performed., Results: Among patients, 24 were treated with CXP and 25 with BG. The 1-year implant CSR and success rate were 100% (n = 42). Bone level change between definitive prosthetic delivery and 1 year was not significantly different between the CXP and BG groups (BG + 0.42 mm, CXP + 0.01 mm). The PES increased from 7.55 to 8.10 for the CXP group and from 6.48 to 7.48 for the BG group; 1-year bleeding indices were 0 (16 CXP, 18 BG) and 1 (4 CXP, 2 BG). Patient quality of life changed from an OHIP-14 score of 6.5 at pretreatment to 1.9 at 1 year. Overall satisfaction (visual analogue score) with function and esthetics was 9.9 and 9.7, respectively. Inter-group differences were not significant for assessed outcomes. No device-related adverse events were reported., Conclusions: The use of CXP and BG for simultaneous implant placement and GBR at dehisced implant sites similarly reduced defect height and improved secondary measures, indicating non-inferiority., (© 2019 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)