Prospective Neodent® Zirconia System Study

The study protocol was reviewed and approved by an Ethics Committee (CE) in Brazil. The sample will be prospectively and consecutively selected and will consist of patients who are 18 years of age or older, who are in need of and who qualify for single dental implants placement in the posterior maxilla region with Neodent® Zirconia. Informed consent in writing will be obtained from each patient participating in the study prior to any study related procedure.

As this study will be analyzed descriptively, sample size calculation was not performed. To generate reliable results, a total number of 30 implants was assumed to be sufficient. Estimating a rate of 1 implant per patient and a drop-out rate of 15%, a sample size of 36 patients resulting in an estimated number of 36 implants is thought to be sufficient to allow for a descriptive analysis of clinical outcome data up to 36 months after implant placement.

Treatment provided to the subjects will be the responsibility of an appropriately qualified dental practitioner to provide the relevant patient care under clinical study conditions. Zirconia Implants will be placed under local anesthesia and with adequate bone bed preparation in posterior maxilla region. More than one implant can be placed in the same patient, as long as the subject presents natural teeth adjacent to the implant site.

Immediately after implant placement, the final placement torque will be registered. The immediate loading will be applied within 48 hours with the insertion of a provisional prosthesis made from intraoral scanning or scanning of dental casts obtained by conventional impression. The insertion torque shall reach at least 35 N.cm and the subject must have physiologic occlusion to immediate loading. If the patient does not reach the minimum torque (35 N.cm), the patient will be followed until the study end but will not be considered to final statistic or, a different implant line would be placed and the study termination form will be filled. The principal investigator will choose how to procedure in this situation. The selection of the prosthetic component shall be conducted according to the need of each subject and to the manufacturer's instructions (IFU). The final prosthesis will be placed 2 months after implant loading.

Data concerning the studied variables will be collected following the procedures and assessments plan by fulfilling the Case Report Form (CRF), in the following stages: screening (First visit); TP - Implant(s) placement and impression/scanning for temporary prosthesis preparation; T0 - Implant(s) loading (up to 48h after placement); TF - Final prosthesis placement (2 months ± 1 week after loading); T6, T12, T24, T36 - 6, 12, 24 e 36 ± 1 month, respectively, after loading.

Standardized digital periapical radiographs will be obtained in a usual daily practice frequency, as determined by the investigator: at pre-operative, to assess the ridge height and width of the supporting bone and locate major anatomical features; in post-surgery (TP) and in T0, TF, T6, T12, T24 and T36 to verify prosthesis adaptation and osseointegration. Computed tomography scans will be obtained from the region of interest prior to surgery, for the selection of the implant to be inserted.