Implant placement is the most widely accepted and commonly used treatment for the prosthetic rehabilitation of the missing teeth.
The original Branemark protocol consist of a two piece implant system being used in a two stage surgical procedure.
Now a days attention is directed towards simplification of mechanical design, simplifying the procedure and attaining successful osseointegration.
The implant–abutment interphase in the conventional TPI, renders the system with a weak line in the entire assembly.
The newly introduced one piece implant design (OPI), eliminates the implant abutment interphase and mimic the natural tooth with a seamless transition between the coronal and radicular unit.
Advantages of using one piece implant design are:
1) It reduces the multiple surgical procedures required for implant placement.
2) As there is no microgap between the implant fixture and the abutment, it cannot harbour bacteria and bone loss around the implant is reduced.
3) No loosening or fracture of the abutment screw.
4) OPI’S follows the conventional crown and bridge procedure.
Disadvantages of one piece design are:
1) It cannot be used in case of tilted abutment.
2) Only knife edge margin can be given because shoulder or chamfer finish line can cause structural weakness of the final restoration.
