Influence of cantilever length and type of arch antagonist on bone loss in total implant-supported prostheses.

This study selected forty-two implants with full arch implantsupported fixed prostheses (with and without a cantilever) with at least five years' loading. Radiographic measurements were performed using Digimizer software (MedCalc Software, Belgium). Bone loss was measured on the distal side of the implant, from the surface of the platform to the edge of the bone crest, and the extent of the cantilever was measured from the distal surface of the last abutment to the end of the metal structure. Three groups were formed according the length of the cantilever: G1: cantilever ≤ 15 mm; G2: cantilever >15 mm; G3: no cantilever. Types of antagonists were grouped as: RP = removable complete denture; FP = fixed implant-supported prosthesis; ND = natural dentition. Data were analyzed according to the length of the cantilever and type of antagonist using Person's test to analyze normality and Student's t-test with P ≦ 0.05. No statistically significant difference was found between G1 and G2; however, increased bone loss was observed in both cantilever groups (G1 and G2) compared to G3 (P> 0.05). The antagonist showed no significant difference in bone loss ( P ≦ 0.05). Cantilevers showed increases in marginal bone loss. The type of antagonist did not influence bone loss.