Digitally planned surgical crown lengthening in the esthetic zone.

Surgical crown lengthening is one of the most common surgical procedures in periodontal practice. It is divided into functional and esthetic surgical crown lengthening. In general, surgical crown lengthening is a predictable periodontal surgical procedure. Its most common complication is excessive regression of the dentoalveolar complex coronally. Esthetic surgical crown lengthening can be performed predictably through prior digital planning, minimizing the risk of potential complications such as excessive regression of the dentoalveolar complex coronally. The present study reported in this article is a clinical case of surgical crown lengthening with digital planning to derive practical recommendations.

Multi-Layer Technique (MLT) with Porcine Collagenated Cortical Bone Lamina for Bone Regeneration Procedures and Immediate Post-Extraction Implantation in the Esthetic Area: A Retrospective Case Series with a Mean Follow-Up of 5 Years.

BACKGROUND: Augmentation of the edentulous atrophic anterior region is a challenging situation. The purpose of this article was to evaluate the effectiveness of a collagenated cortical bone lamina of porcine origin for horizontal ridge augmentation in patients with inadequate alveolar ridge width undergoing immediate post-extraction implantation in the anterior sites, and to report on implant survival rates/complications. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The cases were extracted electronically from a large database according to these specific inclusion criteria: patients with inadequate alveolar ridge width in the anterior maxilla or mandible, who underwent immediate post-extraction implant placement and simultaneous alveolar bone reconstruction using xenogeneic cortical bone lamina. An additional layer of palatal connective tissue graft was inserted between lamina and the vestibular mucosa, for improving soft tissue healing. A collagenated bone substitute was additionally placed in the gap between the lamina and implant surface in all patients. The main outcomes were implant survival and complications. RESULTS: Forty-nine patients with 65 implants were included. Patients' mean age at the time of implant surgery was 60.0 ± 13.6 years. The mean follow-up was 60.5 ± 26.6 months after implant placement. The implant survival was 100%. Four postoperative complications occurred in four patients. No specific factor was found to be associated with complication occurrence. CONCLUSION: The use of collagenated cortical bone lamina can be considered as a successful option for alveolar reconstruction in immediate post-extraction implant insertion procedures in anterior regions with inadequate alveolar ridge width.

Biologic and Technical Complications of Implant-Supported Immediately Loaded Fixed Full-Arch Prostheses: An Evaluation of Up to 6 Years.

PURPOSE: Treatment by means of implant-supported immediately loaded fixed full-arch prostheses is known to be related to biologic and technical complications. The aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the prevalence and moment of occurrence of biologic and technical complications happening in immediately loaded fixed full-arch prostheses. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study investigated patients who received treatment with immediately loaded fixed full-arch prostheses using four to six implants from 2007 to 2013. The investigation included biologic and technical complications. Complications were depicted regarding their prevalence and their first time of occurrence. Statistical analysis was performed regarding the differences of the mean complication values between the mandible and the maxilla and between technical and biologic complications. RESULTS: The investigation included 482 immediately loaded fixed full-arch prostheses (380 patients, mean observation period: 23.5 months). In 193 arches (40%), either technical (30.9%), biologic (6.5%), or both (3.1%) types of complications occurred. Technical complications occurred significantly more often than biologic complications (P < .000). The most frequent technical complication was "fracture of veneering material" (24.7%, arch level). The most frequent biologic complication was "marginal bone loss ≥ 2 mm" (16.3%, implant level). The median first advents of technical complications were after 23/26 months (implant-/prosthesis-related) and after 3 months for biologic complications, respectively. There was no significant difference of the mean complication rates between the maxilla and the mandible (P = .409). In 99.0% of the arches with complications, the restorations could be obtained. CONCLUSION: Within this treatment concept, biologic and technical complications may occur over time. However, the vast majority of complications (99.0%) do not affect the overall prosthesis survival. Technical complications are assumed to occur significantly more often than biologic complications. It is suggested that not only stress and material fatigue but also function is a matter concerning this treatment option and, thus, may be a factor related to complication rates.

"Teflon tape technique": synergy between isolation and lucidity.

The aim of this article is to introduce and illustrate the "Teflon tape technique," which provides good lucidity in combination with excellent isolation of the working field. It is intended to serve as a supplement to the gold standard rubber dam for the adhesive working dental practitioner. Primarily, the Teflon tape technique (Teflon is a registered trademark, and not affiliated with Teflon tape) is particularly suitable for the adhesive cementation of restorations with very thin margins. It allows free access to subgingival areas with variable gingival retraction. Furthermore, this principle can also be applied to other indications, such as Class V restorations or deep core buildups. The technique described is therefore flexible and easy to use. This combination allows a fast integration of the Teflon tape technique into the daily workflow of the dental practitioner.

Implant-Supported Immediately Loaded Fixed Full-Arch Dentures: Evaluation of Implant Survival Rates in a Case Cohort of up to 7 Years.

BACKGROUND: The treatment of severely atrophied and edentulous jaws by means of fixed implant supported solutions is a challenging procedure. PURPOSE: The immediate loading of four to six axial and tilted implants offers the possibility to overcome elaborate hard tissue augmentation procedures but lacks implant and patient related data on implant survival rates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective 7-years clinical trial investigated the implant survival rates of 2,081 implants (380 patients, 482 jaws) using an immediate loading protocol with either 4, 5, or 6 implants per restoration. Survival rates were calculated concerning implantation related factors (jaws/number of supporting implants/angulations/diameters/lengths) and patient related factors (medical status/smoking). RESULTS: Overall survival of 2,081 implants was 97.0% on implant level. Survival rates of implantation related factors did not yield significant differences. Significant differences were yield between healthy patients and patients with osteoporosis (p = .002) and the medical status group "other" (p = .032), respectively. Smokers yielded a significantly higher survival than nonsmokers (p = .002). CONCLUSIONS: It is assumed that four implants per jaw serve as a sufficient implant number for full arch restorations in both, the mandible and the maxilla. Osteoporosis under the medication with bisphosphonates seems to be a risk factor for implant survival. The authors suggest that the effect of smoking on ISRs remains controversial within this treatment concept.