The International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery recently reported on a promissing 100% biocompatible zirconia implant process for immediate single-tooth replacement.  In the study, a right premolar root was removed and a custom-made similar root was milled and placed into the root socket four days later back.  No complications occurred during the healing process, and four months later, a crown was cemented to the implant.

In a follow-up study 26 months later, there was no bone resorption or soft-tissue recession, and excellent osseointegration of the implant was believed to have been achieved.

Not only is zirconia an excellent material for copings and frameworks, but it is also used elsewhere in the body for bone replacement and implantation, such as hip joints.  Using modern CAD CAM processes, it is now possible to scan a removed root, and quicky mill, roughen, sinter, and implant a very strong and esthetically pleasing implant solution.

Installing titanium implants is a difficult surgical procedure, often involving drilling. risk bearing augmentations and barrier membranes.  By contrast, replacing the root with a root-analogue zirconia implant is a comparatively simple procedure.  More importantly, the white translucent nature of zircona makes for a much more aesthetically pleasing final restoration.

Advantages:

• No drilling - no loss of heathy bone, and no operative drama or damage to nearby roots, nerves or sunus
• Expensive drilling guides are not required.
• Maximum contact and stability - exact fit minimizes healing time because there are no gabs between the implant and the bone
• Minimally invasive - no bone augmentation, guided bone, or tissue regeneration is required
  
• Color matched - no metal is used, and zirconia can be shaded to match root color and/or tooth color.  If soft or hard tissues receed later in life, the newly exposed part will appear to be the neck of a tooth (not an implant).
  
• No training or special oral or maxillofacial surgical skills are required to install
• High patient acceptance - only a few minutes to install, compared to extensive and difficult installation of tintanium implants
• Fast healing - single implant has less load incurring less bone and soft tissue resorption due to involution atrophy
• No additional prosthetic parts are required
• No specialized surgical instruments, such a drilling equipment and surgical screw drivers, are required.
• No training required on the variety of numerous and confusing vendor-speific secondary implant parts.
• No inventory required and special handling and training needed for secondary prosthetics for use with implants.
• No dependence on individual implant manufacturers for availability of spare parts.
• No platform switching - no screw loosening or infected gaps
• Easy modification - zirconia stump can be ground using conventional dental drills.

Limitations:

• Careful extraction is mandatory, so patients with damaged periodontal ligament are excluded
• Position of misaligned tooth cannot be corrected

ijoms-zirconiaimplant.pdf 490.28 Kb

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