"Pain-Free" Procedure
The ridge at #27 is narrow and is reduced ~ 4 mm in height (Fig.1 *) to obtain ~ 4 mm buccolingual width. A 3x14 mm 1-piece implant with ball abutment is placed (Fig.3 (*: bone graft)). In contrast, there is no problem of the buccolingual width after #22 extraction; initial osteotomy depth is 14 mm to gain ~ 5 mm of the native bone for primary stability (Fig.2). Since the lingual crest is significantly lower than the buccal one, a shorter implant (2-piece, 3.8x12 mm, Fig.4) is placed so that a ball abutment with a longer cuff is chosen (4 mm). Soft reline is applied to the site of #22 with minimal retention. But the patient is pleased with the "pain-free" procedure. It appears that gingivectomy is required for the ball abutments in 2 months (Fig.5). The implants seem osteotointegrated nearly 4 months postop (Fig.6,7). Ten months postop, the patient will return for fabrication of new full dentures to correct Class II relationship. There is mild or no bone loss 2 year 4 months postop (Fig.8,9), although the housing at #27 is dislodged. Return to Lower Canine Immediate Implant, Armaments Overdentures Xin Wei, DDS, PhD, MS 1st edition 07/24/2018, last revision 12/18/2020