Accuracy combining different brands of implants and abutments

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the vertical misfit between different brands of dental implants and prosthetic abutments, with or without mechanical torque, and to study their possible combination. STUDY DESIGN Five different brands of implant were used in the study: Biofit (Castemaggiore, Italy), Bioner S.A. (Barcelona, Spain), 3i Biomet (Palm Beach, U.S.A.), BTI (Alava, Spain) and Nobel Biocare (Göteborg, Sweden), with standard 4.1 mm heads and external hexagons, and their respective machined prosthetic abutments. The implant-to-abutment fit/misfit was evaluated at four points (vestibular, lingual/palatine, mesial and distal) between implants and abutments of the same brand and different brands, with or without mechanical torque, using SEM micrographs at 5000X. Image analysis was performed using NIS-Elements software (Nikon Instruments Europe B.V.). RESULTS Before applying torque, vertical misfit (microgaps) of the different combinations tested varied between 1.6 and 5.4 microns and after applying torque, between 0.9 and 5.9 microns, an overall average of 3.46 ± 2.96 microns. For manual assembly without the use of mechanical torque, the best results were obtained with the combination of the 3i implant and the BTI abutment. The Nobel implant and Nobel abutment, 3i-3i and BTI-BTI and the combination of 3i implant with BTI or Nobel abutment provided the best vertical fit when mechanical torque was applied. CONCLUSIONS The vertical fits obtained were within the limits considered clinically acceptable. The application of mechanical torque improved outcomes. There is compatibility between implants and abutments of different brand and so their combination is a clinical possibility.