Tooth-supported telescopic crown-retained dentures:: An up to 9-year retrospective clinical follow-up study

Purpose: This study evaluated outcome and quality of treatments with telescopic crown-retained dentures. Materials and Methods: A total of 72 subjects (27 men and 45 women; mean age 67 years) wearing 75 telescopic crown-retained dentures (18 in the mandible and 57 in the maxilla) participated in the study. There were a total of 368 abutment teeth, 272 in the maxilla and 96 in the mandible. Each patient was clinically examined. Using the CDA evaluation system, four calibrated evaluators also examined, independently, the inner crowns for margin integrity and the superstructure for retention, occlusion, stability, wear, and esthetic appearance. Observer consistency was measured with Cohen's kappa. Results: The observation period varied from 9 months to 9.3 years (mean 3.8 years). One telescopic crown-retained denture was lost, and 24 abutment teeth (7%) were extracted during the observation period. In 49 abutment teeth (13%), technical complications had occurred, and a total of four framework fractures (5%) were observed. Based on the CDA criteria, most of the characteristics were evaluated as satisfactory. The characteristics "condition of denture-supporting soft tissue" and "superstructure wear" showed the highest frequencies of not acceptable ratings, 44% and 45%, respectively. Conclusion: in this retrospective follow-up study, satisfactory outcome was found for tooth-supported telescopic crown-retained dentures over a mean observation period of 3.8 years.