Alveolar ridge preservation at tooth extraction.

The principles of guided bone regeneration, which are at the core of contemporary periodontal therapy, have evolved into the present generation of barrier membranes, which greatly improve the overall result by not requiring primary closure. The supplemental addition of calcium sulfate to the graft materials appears to accelerate the rate of vital bone formation. In the future, these procedures are likely to become less invasive and more predictable, barrier membranes may not be needed and additional materials will be available that will accelerate the formation of bone.

Periodontics--tissue engineering and the future.

Periodontics has a long history of utilizing advances in science to expand and improve periodontal therapies. Recently the American Academy of Periodontology published the findings of the Contemporary Science Workshop, which conducted state-of-the-art evidence-based reviews of current and emerging areas in periodontics. The findings of this workshop provide the basis for an evidence-based approach to periodontal therapy.

The immediate dental implant.

Numerous clinical studies have shown that dental implants can be placed immediately in extraction sockets with success when sites are carefully selected. Dental implants have been placed at the time of extraction with a variety of techniques. All the techniques report survival rates of 94 percent to 100 percent over a varied healing period of three months to approximately seven years.