Titanium implants and onlay bone graft to the atrophic edentulous maxilla: a 3-year longitudinal study.

Treatment of the atrophic maxilla using an onlay bone-grafting technique in combination with simultaneous insertion of endosteal implants (Branemark System) was performed in 17 patients. They were followed during a 3-year period. At the end of this period, 14 patients had stable bridges in use and one patient had an overdenture. Two patients had had to return to conventional dentures due to implant losses. The survival rate of the implants after 3 years use was 75%. It is concluded that, in spite of the implant losses, onlay bone grafting to the maxilla is a valuable method in cases of severe maxillary atrophy.