Unconventional Implant Placement IV. Implant Placement through Impacted Teeth to Avoid Invasive Surgery. Long-term Results of 3 Cases.

This paper presents the long-term data of patients that have been treated with an unconventional implant placement protocol to avoid an invasive surgery when edentulism was caused by an impacted tooth. In 2009, the follow-up of this unconven-tional protocol was 2 to 3.5 years; this article documents now the long-term 5- to 8-year follow-up of 3 patients and 5 im-plants. Over this period of time, implant stability was maintained without complications. This unconventional protocol opens intriguing possibilities; however, more patients with long-term follow-up are warranted before endorsing it in routine appli-cation. Nonetheless, it might suggest that there is still room to revisit one of the leading concepts in dental implantology.