Journal of Dental Medicine

Mendeley  

Zotero  

Parhiz A, Fadavi F, Semnani S J. Outcome of short implants as an alternative to sinus lift surgery and standard-length implants for rehabilitation of atrophic posterior maxilla: A clinical trial. jdm 2019; 32 (1) :5-10
URL: http://jdm.tums.ac.ir/article-1-5864-en.html

Background and Aims: The aim of this study was to assess the outcome of short implants (<8 mm length) as an alternative to sinus lift surgery and placement of standard-length implants (10-12 mm length) for rehabilitation of atrophic posterior maxilla.
Materials and Methods: In this prospective clinical trial, 26 patients with 6-7 mm of residual alveolar bone height in their atrophic posterior maxilla were randomly divided into two groups (n=13). The test group received short implants without sinus lift surgery while the control group received standard-length implants after maxillary sinus floor augmentation. The bone loss was evaluated at 1 to 2 years after loading of implants on radiographies and the comparison between the two groups was done using chi-square test.
Results: At 1 year, two patients (15.4%) in the short implant and one patient (7.7%) in the standard implant group experienced bone loss (P=0.5). At 2 years, four patients (30.8%) in the short implant and two patients (15.4%) in the standard implant group showed bone loss (P=0.4).
Conclusion: At 2 years after loading, the bone loss was not significantly different around short and standard-length implants. Short implants appeared to be a suitable alternative to sinus lift surgery and placement of standard-length implants for rehabilitation of atrophic posterior maxilla. However, further studies with longer follow ups are still required to cast a final judgment in this respect.