X-ray evaluation at 5-6 years of Straumann implants (part 1)

The loss of bone around implants is, on an average, below 1 mm during the first year and 0.2 mm per year in the years that follow. It essentially depends upon biomechanical factors but the level at which the bone stabilizes is determines by the implant depth. Intraoral radiographs (paralleling technique) are considered as the "firs choice2 for the evaluation of the radiolucency with respect to the proximal peri-implant bone. This study was based on 528 implants placesd in private practice, with an objective to determine their success rate and their survival at 5-6 years, to evaluate the peri-implant proximal bone loss and outline the factors that could influence this bone loss. The results obtained from 411 accessible patient files are in accordance with the literature date (at 5-6 years, the survival rate is 99.2%, the success rate is 93%, the average bone los sis 1.16 mm). The bone loss was more severe in smokers and in implants with a TPS surface, those placed in the anterior regions or those with vestibular cortical bone below the 1 mm. Short implants were not associated with a more severe bone loss than longer implants