Class II Kennedy implant assisted mandibular removable partial dentures with and without cross arch stabilization: A strain gauge in vitro study.

Introduction
Dental implants and extracoronal attachments were used with Kennedy class II implant assisted removable partial dentures (IARPD) without a major connector. strain gauges were used to detect the microstrains generated around the abutments and dental implants.
Materials and Methods
Thirty acrylic resin models of a mandibular class II Kennedy received 3 RPD designs; a clasp retained RPD in group I, a unilateral clasp retained RPD without a major connector supported by a dental implant placed once at the first molar and once at the second molar position in group II, and in group III, a clasp free RPD, with extracoronal attachments, supported by a dental implants placed in similar positions to group II. Strain gauges were used to determine which design generated more significant loads, and recorded microstrains were statistically analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests.
Results
Significantly greater loads around abutment teeth were reported in group II and group III than in group I. The distal placement of the implants resulted in significantly greater microstrains more than the mesial placement in groups II and III, and both placements were of more intensity in group II than in group III.
Conclusions
A Kennedy class II IARPD can be effectively altered to a bounded space prosthesis by placement of a dental implant in the first rather than the second molar position, and together with an extracoronal attachment, the clasp and major connector can be omitted once the edentulous span is short, and the clinical situation is favorable.