Maxillary ridge preservation prior to immediate implant insertion

There is a growing tendency to place single tooth implants immediately after extracting a failing tooth in the posterior region. The aim of this article is to present the treatment and the one-year clinical follow-up of a patient. This case presentation illustrates a solution of rehabilitation option after maxillary bicuspid loss, including the diagnosis, treatment planning and the procedure of implantation. After the atraumatic extraction of the both maxillary premolars, we did a procedure for alveolar ridge preservation using a mixture of cortico-cancellous allograft and xenograft, and resorbable membrane (Maxgraft® and Mucoderm® by Botiss biomateratials GmbH, Germany) to enlarge the ridge and correct facial and socket defects, as well as thickening the peri-implant tissue. We used endosseous titanium self-tapping dental implants with conical shape, immediately placed after the act of extraction. The platform-switching helps preventing crestal bone loss, increases the volume of soft tissue around the implant platform and improves the esthetic end result. Bone and soft tissue defects were healed over time by wearing a long-term temporary crowns, titanium custom made abutments and final BruxZir® solid zirconia crowns. Conclusion: The paper highlights this combined approach in the placement of implants in fresh extraction sockets with good and stable esthetic and functional results. Keywords: Immediate implant placement, posterior region, extraction sites, ridge preservatio