Secondary outcome measures were as follows:

• Peri-implant marginal bone level changes: evaluated on intraoral radiographs taken with the paralleling technique at implant placement, 6 months and 1 year after loading. All measurements were taken by an independent assessor (LS). Radiographs were scanned, digitized in JPG format, converted to TIFF format with a 600 dpi resolution, and stored in a personal computer. Peri-implant marginal bone levels were measured using Image J 1.42 software (National Institute of Mental Health, MD, USA). The software was calibrated for every single image using the known implant diameter. Measurements of the mesial and distal crestal bone levels adjacent to each implant were made to the nearest 0.01 mm and averaged at patient level and then group level. The measurements were taken parallel to the implant axis. Reference points for the linear measurements were the most coronal margin of the implant collar and the most coronal point of bone-to-implant contact.

Statistical analysis was performed using the statistical package StatView (version 5.01.98, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). Significance was considered at p < 0.05. The paired-samples t test was used to evaluate the bone level changes. The patient was the statistical unit of the analysis. A medical doctor (GG) with expertise in dental biostatistics analyzed the data.