Overdenture with immediate load: mastication and nutrition

Lower conventional complete dentures were converted to overdentures retained by two implants with an immediately loaded bar-clip system (n 16). The masticatory performance test was carried out using 'Optocal' after forty chewing strokes. Nutritional condition was evaluated by means of a Mini-Nutritional-Assessment questionnaire. No individual was classified as malnourished. The masticatory performance test demonstrated a statistically significant difference before conversion (baseline) and 3 and 6 months after conversion of the lower conventional complete denture to an implant-retained overdenture (paired-samples t test; P<0.05). A statistically significant difference before and after 6 months of conversion for nutritional condition (Wilcoxon test; P<0.05) was also observed. The association between masticatory performance and nutritional assessment demonstrated that a statistically significant difference between masticatory performance of the subgroups classified at baseline as nourished (22.43%) and those at risk of malnutrition (3.9%) was only evidenced before conversion (P=0.006). After the conversion from a lower conventional complete denture to an implant-retained overdenture, at 3 months, the risk of malnutrition and nourished at baseline did not present significant differences in masticatory performance. Nonetheless, the mean masticatory performance potential was 19.86 and 31.98% for subgroups classified at baseline as at risk of malnutrition and nourished, respectively (P=0.187). The results before conversion were less favourable for masticatory performance and nutritional condition. The increased retention of the mandibular prosthesis allowed improvement in masticatory performance and nutritional condition.