Dental implants in dentate primary and secondary Sjögren's syndrome patients: A multicenter prospective cohort study

OBJECTIVES: To prospectively assess the clinical performance and patient‐reported outcomes of dental implants in dentate patients with primary and secondary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS and sSS, respectively) compared to patients without SS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty‐seven implants were placed in 17 patients with pSS/sSS and 26 implants in 17 non‐SS patients to replace missing (pre)molars. Clinical performance, marginal bone‐level changes, patient satisfaction, and oral health‐related quality of life (OHRQoL) were assessed at 1 (T1), 6 (T6), 12 (T12), and 18 (T18) months after placement of the superstructure. Marginal bone‐level changes were measured on standardized dental radiographs. Clinical parameters included implant and crown survival, plaque, bleeding and gingival indices, and probing depth. Patient satisfaction and OHRQoL were assessed with validated questionnaires. RESULTS: Implant survival at T18 was 100% in the patients with pSS/sSS and 96.2% in the non‐SS group. Mean marginal bone loss at T18 did not differ between patients with pSS/sSS and non‐SS patients, 1.10 ± 1.04 and 1.04 ± 0.75 mm, respectively (p = .87). Clinical performance was good with no differences between the groups for all outcome measures (p > .05). OHRQoL in patients with pSS/sSS had improved significantly after placement of implant supported crowns at all measuring moments compared to baseline (p < .05). Nevertheless, patient satisfaction and OHRQoL remained significantly higher for patients without SS at all measuring moments (p < .05). CONCLUSION: Dental implants can be successfully applied in dentate patients with pSS/sSS and have a positive effect on OHRQoL.