Abstract
This study determines the knowledge, attitude, and practice of patients opting for a single implant over a 3-unit Bridge amongst practicing dental surgeons. Using a Google questionnaire, a descriptive cross-sectional study was executed amongst dental surgeons practicing with undergraduate and post-graduate degrees. Data obtained from the study were recorded in Microsoft Excel 2007 version, and SPSS version 18.0 was used. Most of the dental surgeons who participated in the study have been practicing prosthodontic restoration with the help of implants. The calculation of statistical analysis, such as mean and standard deviation and analysis between variations, was done using student t-tests, and the association between variables was determined using Chi-square. A value was found significant when the p-value was less than 0.05. The treatment options available for restoring an edentulous site vary and depend on several factors, among which economic factors and patient awareness stand high in the pyramid. This study has brought forward many aspects that need to be considered in replacing the edentulous site that dominates the current scenario in dental practice.
Keywords: Dental implant, economics, Fixed dental prosthesis, Single implant, Cost effectivity