The appliances may also place additional stress on abutment teeth and lead to continued resorption of the bone in the edentulous ridge. As the age of the population continues to increase, it is obvious this condition will continue. Dental implants provide an excellent modality for placing fixed restorations and eliminating the need for a removable distal extension appliance. Implants can provide a predictable foundation for fixed restorations. Implant dentistry has reached the status in science and dental treatment as a very predictable procedure.
Implants now have a very high success rate that has been documented in the literature.
The available bone augmentation procedures and tissue management techniques can provide a predictable foundation for the implants. Long term studies show very high rates of success with endosteal implants. The root form implants used today are osseointegrated which denotes some direct contact of living bone with the surface of the implant. Rapid fixation in the bone provides a solid, stable foundation for supporting a variety of fixed restorations. Based on the documented success of implants, treatment can include the use of implant supported or assisted restorations and allow the removal of questionable teeth.