This article describes how the concept of platform switching has been incorporated into a new implant design as a method of reducing crestal bone loss and maintaining the gingival papillae. A 6-month study of the effects of this implant on bone loss is described. Ten new platform switched implants were placed into fresh anterior maxillary extraction sites in 3 men and 7 women, ranging in age between 29 and 45 years old, and immediately provisionalized. The adjoining bone height was evaluated with digital radiography on the day after implant placement, and at 15 days, 1, 2, 3, and 6 months later. After 6 months, the mean bone loss on the mesial of the central-incisor implants was 0.05 mm. The mean bone loss was 0.07 mm on the distal of the central incisor implants, 0.07 mm on the mesial of the lateral-incisor implants, and 0.06 mm on the distal of the lateral-incisor implants. An implant design that incorporates the concept of platform switching is a simple and effective way to control circumferential bone loss around dental implants, helping to ensure a predictable esthetic result.

Maxillary alveolar atrophy often limits the placement of dental implants. This article reports on a refinement of a technique for widening the atrophic ridge by splitting the alveolar bone longitudinally. Treatment of a patient with a severely resorbed edentulous maxilla is described. Six 4-mm wide by 13-mm long threaded Osseotite implants were placed immediately within the split ridge and surrounded with a mixture of autogenous tuberosity and bovine bone. The advantages of this technique for patients include less surgical trauma and condensed treatment time.

Background: Recent data have shown that short dental implants can be the preferred treatment in most of cases of posterior atrophic alveolar ridges, offering higher survival and lower complication rates than long implants. The survival rates, stability, and marginal bone level changes were compared between short implants (7 and 8.5 mm) and standard-length implants (≥10 mm). Methods: Prospective observational study in which adult patients requiring ≥1 osseointegrated implants to replace missing teeth were recruited consecutively. A clinical examination was performed on the day the definitive prosthesis was placed and after 6 and 12 months. Implant stability quotient (ISQ), marginal bone level (MBL) changes, and the correlation between these parameters and the characteristics of the implants were evaluated. Results: A total of 99 implants were inserted (47 short, 52 standard) in 74 patients. The 12-month survival rate was 100%. ISQ values showed a similar pattern for both types of implants. No correlation was found between ISQ changes after one year and MBL values, nor between the latter and the characteristics of the implants. Conclusions: With clinical treatment criteria, shorter implants (7 and 8.5 mm in length) can be just as useful as standard-length implants in atrophic alveolar ridges, demonstrating similar rates of survival, stability, and crestal bone loss.

Medication-induced jaw osteonecrosis (MRONJ) is a rare and serious disease with a negative impact on patients’ quality of life, whose exact cause remains unclear and which may have a multifactorial origin. Although there are different therapeutic protocols, there is still no consensus. This case series evaluated three patients diagnosed with staged 2 MRONJ treated at the University of Murcia dental clinic according to the protocols described by the Spanish Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Within 12 months of the application of therapeutic protocols, the lesions were completely healed in all cases. Radiography showed slow but progressive healing with normal bone structure. Conservative treatment with antibiotics, chlorhexidine rinses and minimally invasive surgical intervention with necrotic bone resection is effective in treating stage 2 of MRONJ. In cases of refractory osteonecrosis, the application of platelet and leukocyte-rich fibrin (PRF-L) in the surgical approach improves the outcome in soft tissue healing and bone regeneration but further research is needed to confirm its effectiveness.