Platform-Switching to Preserve Peri-Implant Bone: A Meta-Analysis.

The objective of this meta-analysis was to determine the literature-based evidence if platform-switching has an effect in preventing marginal bone loss around prosthodontic implants following their functional loading in comparison to conventional platform-matching. A systematic literature search was performed on PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar for Literature from 1950 to January 2015, human randomized clinical trials (RCTs) and prospective clinical controlled cohort studies (PCCS) reporting marginal bone loss around platform-switched and matched implants. Six RCTs with a low risk of bias revealed a significantly less mean marginal bone loss (0.57 mm [CI 95% 0.30; 0.84]) around platform-switched implants in comparison to platform-matched implants [1.14 mm (CI 95% 0.69; 1.6, p < 0.001)]. The meta-analysis revealed a significantly less peri-implant marginal bone loss with platform-switched implants as compared to platform-matched implants. The qualitative analysis depicts a trend favouring the platform-switching technique over platform- matching technique to prevent marginal bone loss. However, owing to the heterogeneity of the included studies, their results necessitate cautious interpretation.