Influence of abutment height and convergence angle on the retrievability of cement-retained implant prostheses with a lingual slot

PURPOSE. Cement-retained implant prostheses can lack proper retrievability during repair, and residual cement can cause peri-implantitis. The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the influence of abutment height and convergence angle on the retrievability of cement-retained implant prostheses with lingual slots, known as retrievable cement-type slots (RCS). MATERIALS AND METHODS. We fabricated six types of titanium abutments (10 of each type) with two different heights (4 mm and 6 mm), three different convergence angles ($8^{\circ}$, $10^{\circ}$, and $12^{\circ}$), a sloped shoulder margin (0.6 mm depth), a rectangular shape ($6mm{\times}6.5mm$) with rounded edges, and a rectangular ledge ($2mm{\times}1mm$) for the RCS. One monolithic zirconia crown was fabricated for each abutment using a dental computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing system. The abutments and crowns were permanently cemented together with dual-curing resin cement, followed by 24 hours in demineralized water at room temperature. Using a custom-made device with a slot driver and torque gauge, we recorded the torque ($N{\cdot}cm$) required to remove the crowns. Statistical analysis was conducted using multiple regression analysis and Mann-Whitney U tests (${\alpha}=.05$). RESULTS. Removal torques significantly decreased as convergence angles increased. Multiple regression analysis showed no significant interaction between the abutment height and the convergence angle (Durbin-Watson ratio: 2.186). CONCLUSION. Within the limitations of this in vitro study, we suggest that the retrievability of cement-retained implant prostheses with RCS can be maintained by adjusting the abutment height and convergence angle, even when they are permanently cemented together.