Resin-bonded fixed partial denture retention: a retrospective 13-year follow-up.

A total of 51 resin-bonded fixed partial dentures (RBFPDs) were inserted under controlled clinical conditions and evaluated over a period of 13 years. Three levels of survival were defined: complete survival (no debonding); functional survival (loss of retention on one occasion with rebonding of the original RBFPD); and multiple survival (loss of retention on several occasions with rebonding of the original RBFPD). The effect of the aetiology, location (anterior/posterior or maxillary/mandibulary) and number of units of the missing tooth on RBFPD survival rates were investigated. The mean survival times and confidence levels were determined for each survival category, using the Kaplan-Meier procedure. The relative risks were calculated by the Cox regression procedure. The overall complete survival level of the study population at the end of the follow-up period was 85 months +/- 13%. Rebonding the RBFPDs once increased the overall functional survival rate to 112 months +/- 10% and multiple rebonding led to a further increase to 131 months +/- 8%. The RBFPD placement under conditions of good periodontal support in which orthodontic treatment was not required, such as trauma among other factors, showed significantly higher survival rates than those placed after periodontal or orthodontic treatment. This indicates that, under both these conditions, RBFPDs may serve as long-term or semi-permanent restorations.