Immediately loaded bar-connected implants with an anodized surface inserted in the anterior mandible in a patient treated with diphosphonates for osteoporosis: a case report with a 12-month follow-up.

BACKGROUND: It has been suggested that tooth loss is greater in the osteoporotic patient population. Only a few cases have been reported in the literature about the use of dental implants in patients with osteoporosis. Diphosphonates are stable analogs of pyrophosphate, a physiologic regulator of calcification and bone resorption. Multiple implant failures have been reported in a patient undergoing treatment with diphosphonates. Recently, several clinical and experimental reports have shown that immediate loading of dental implants is possible in selected situations.

PURPOSE: The aim of this case report was to present the clinical outcome of immediate loading of implants in a patient undergoing diphosphonate treatment for osteoporosis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a 65-year-old patient undergoing diphosphonate treatment for osteoporosis, four implants were inserted in the anterior mandible. The implants were connected with a bar supporting an overdenture and were then loaded the same day.

RESULTS: No problems occurred in the postoperative period. At 1-year follow-up, all four of the implants appeared to be clinically osseointegrated, and no mobility was present. Minimal bone resorption was present around all implants.

CONCLUSIONS: Our case report points to the fact that, contrary to what has been reported in the literature, it is possible to successfully insert and load immediately after surgery dental implants in a patient undergoing diphosphonate treatment for osteoporosis.