Are Short Implants (< 10 mm) Effective?

METHODS:
A meta-analysis on prospective clinical trials yielded thirteen studies with 1,955 dental implants, of which 914 were short implants < 10 mm in length.

RESULTS:

Short implants had an estimated survival rate of 88.1% at 168 months, compared to a similar survival rate of 86.7% for standard implants (P=0.254). The peak failure rate for short dental implants occurred between 4 and 6 years of function. The peak failure rate for standard implants occurred between 6 and 8 years of function.

CONCLUSIONS:

Similar long term survival rates for implants < 10 mm in length compared to longer implants. When implant failure did occur, it was at an earlier stage for the shorter implants.

DR. GEBRAEL’S COMMENTS:
Bone augmentation procedures have limitations and may not be acceptable to many patients due to increases in cost, treatment duration, and site morbidity. Short implants can be used with a good long term survival rate. This meta-analysis however was not able to determine the influence of bone density or type of prosthetic reconstruction on implant survival.

 


 

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE REFER TO:

Are Short Dental Implants (< 10mm) Effective?
A Meta-Analysis on Prospective Clinical Trials

Monje A, Chan HL, Fu JH, Suarez F, Galindo-Moreno P, Wang HM
Journal of Periodontology July 2013, Vol. 84, No. 7, Pages 895- 904

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