Immediate dental implant placement in the aesthetic zone
After pulling a tooth when aesthetics play a role, there is a tendency to place a dental implant immediately after the pulling procedure, preferably in combination with a temporary crown. This tendency is probably related to evolving societal factors, with more demanding patients and a wish for an aesthetic and direct result. In two randomized clinical trials (80 patients in total) the treatment outcome was investigated of the immediately placed dental implants into major and minor bone defects after pulling the tooth. The number of operations was reduced from 2 to 3, to 1 or 2. The treatment outcome was expressed in different outcome measures. Outcome measures were the survival rate of implants, changes in hard and soft tissues around the implant, an objective assessment of the aesthetic result and the assessment by the patient him/herself. The most important conclusion is that immediate dental implant placement after pulling a tooth when aesthetics play a role, results in excellent short-term results (1-year results) with regard to the survival rate of the implants, the condition of soft and hard tissues around the implants, aesthetic measurements and patient-satisfaction. Whether this technique also leads to good long-term results has yet to be investigated.