The effect of all-ceramic and porcelain-fused-to-metal restorations on marginal peri-implant soft tissue color: a randomized controlled clinical trial

The aim of this study was to test the color-change effect of all-ceramic restorations compared with porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM) restorations on marginal peri-implant soft tissue. Thirty patients were randomly divided into 2 groups of 15 subjects each. The all-ceramic group received all-ceramic crowns on aluminum oxide-based abutments, while the PFM group received crowns on titanium or gold abutments. A reflectance spectrophotometer was used to measure the color difference (deltaE(Implant)) between the midfacial peri-implant mucosa before and after restoration insertion. The color difference (deltaE(Tooth-implant)) between the midfacial peri-implant mucosa and the gingival margin of the corresponding neighboring tooth was tested. The mucosal thickness was measured midfacially around the implant (MT(Implant)) and neighboring tooth (MT(Tooth)). deltaE(Implant) values were similar for the all-ceramic (7.4 +/- 2.7) and PFM groups (7.6 +/- 2.8). The all-ceramic group induced significantly less visible mucosal color change (3.4 +/- 1.4) compared to the PFM group (5.2 +/- 2.3). The MT(Implant) value of the all-ceramic group was 3.4 +/- 0.8 mm, while that of the PFM group was 2.9 +/- 0.9 mm, which was not significantly different. Significant differences were found when comparing MT(Implant) (3.1 +/- 0.9) and MT(Tooth) (1.2 +/- 0.3) values for test and control groups. All-ceramic restorations revealed a better color match to the neighboring teeth than PFM restorations.