Occlusal contact and clearance of posterior implant-supported single crowns designed by two different methods: a self-controlled study

BACKGROUND: Precise occlusal design of implant-supported fixed prostheses is difficult to achieve by the conventional wax-up method, often requiring chairside adjustments. The computer-aided design (CAD) method is promising. This study aims to compare the occlusal contacts and clearance of posterior implant-supported single crowns designed by the CAD and conventional methods. METHODS: Sample size calculation indicated fourteen samples per group. Two sets of type-IV plaster casts with a single implant analog inserted in the posterior teeth region were mounted as master casts in a mechanical articulator in maximal intercuspal position (MIP). Seven working cast sets were obtained from each master cast by a closed tray technique, and mounted in MIP. Two implant-supported single crowns were designed with an occlusal clearance to achieve light occlusal contact in each working cast set by CAD and conventional method, separately. For the CAD group, the crown was designed in digital models obtained by scanning the working casts. For the conventional group, wax-up of the crown was prepared on the working casts and scanned to generate a STL file. In the working and master casts, mean and minimum occlusal clearances in the designed occlusal contact area of the both finished prostheses were calculated using the occlusal clearance (OC) and occlusal record (OR) method. The prostheses’ occlusion was evaluated in master casts. RESULTS: For the evaluation in the working casts, both design methods had similar mean occlusal clearances by the OC method (195.4 ± 43.8 vs. 179.8 ± 41.8 μm; P = 0.300), while CAD group resulted in a significantly larger minimum occlusal clearance in the designed occlusal contact area (139.5 ± 52.3 vs. 99.8 ± 43.8 μm; P = 0.043). Both design methods had similar mean and minimum occlusal clearances by the OR method (P > 0.05). For the evaluation in the master casts, both design techniques had similar mean and minimum occlusal clearances, number and distribution of occlusal contacts, and lateral interference ratios (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Occlusal contact and clearance of posterior implant-supported single crowns designed by the CAD method can be at least as good as those designed by the conventional wax-up method.