The Effect of Lubricant on the Detorque Force of Locator/Kerator Abutment in Overdenture Patients: A Pilot Clinical Study.

BACKGROUND

Despite the implants' remarkable success, mechanical failure of implant-abutment screws is a challenge for clinicians. Among the types of mechanical failures, abutment screw loosening is still frequently reported in the literature.

PURPOSE

The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of using lubricant on the detorque force (removal force) of locator/kerator abutment in overdenture patients after 6 months of clinical usage.

MATERIALS AND METHOD

This pilot clinical study examined the detorque force of implants in 20 edentulous patients with two mandibular implants positioned between the mental foramen. The patients underwent the fabrication of a complete maxillary prosthesis and mandibular overdenture. Before loading attachments in the delivery session, healing abutments were removed, and implant interiors dried, randomly some fixtures received a tetracycline eye ointment 1% lubricant, while the others remained non-lubricated. Abutments were secured with prescribed torque according to implant system guidelines (20 N.cm). After 6 months, detorque forces for the abutment locators were measured using a torque meter. Descriptive statistics, mean comparison, and Pearson correlation were performed on the obtained data. A significant level of Value<0.05 was considered in the present study.

RESULTS

The mean detorque force was 13.4±1.94 in the non-lubricated group and 16.35± 1.24 in the lubricated group, which was significantly higher in the lubricated group (< 0.001). Other results of the study include the non-significance of the difference in detorque force within male and female groups (> 0.05), as well as the non-significance of Pearson's correlation between patients' age and detorque force (> 0.05).

CONCLUSION

According to the results, the use of lubricant significantly increases the detorque force, and it is recommended to use tetracycline eye ointment as a lubricant in implant treatment processes.