Clinical outcomes of digital scans versus conventional impressions for implant-supported fixed complete arch prostheses: A systematic review and meta-analysis

With the growing use of digital scanning, an evaluation of the clinical impact of digital scans versus conventional impressions in complete arch implant-supported prostheses is needed. However, systematic reviews on this subject are lacking. The purpose of this systematic review was to evaluate the scanning and impression times and the radiographic marginal bone loss over time associated with digital scans and conventional impressions for complete arch implant-supported fixed prostheses. The search was performed in MEDLINE/PubMed, SCOPUS, EMBASE, and Web of Science. Only randomized clinical trials (RCTs) comparing digital scans and conventional impressions for complete arch prostheses were included in the review. The scan and impression times and marginal bone loss were analyzed through random effects meta-analysis. Six RCTs were included. The meta-analysis was conducted by using a standardized mean difference (MD) and indicated a statistically significant reduction in time for the digital scan group compared with the conventional group (MD 10.01 [7.46, 12.55], P