The Academy of Osseointegration (AO) recently conducted a three-day scientific workshop in Oak Brook, Illinois, addressing dental implant healing and force mechanics, inflammation, and mucosal healing.
The invitation-only event drew nearly 70 AO members across dental disciplines from around the globe as well as representatives from other professional dental organizations, the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, the American Academy of Periodontology, and the American College of Prosthodontists.
Chaired by Clark M. Stanford, DDS, AO vice president and distinguished professor and dean of the College of Dentistry at the University of Illinois at Chicago, the summit was organized to find out if there may be elevated risk factors attributable to local or systemic issues as recent literature suggests.
“As more clinical experience is obtained from oral implants having been in patients’ mouths longer, either because they were in place for many years or because patients are literally living longer, we are seeing late-term complications that need to be considered,” Stanford said.
Participants discussed three questions, each researched and presented by one of three work groups. Framed around outcomes or impact on long-term osseointegration, they addressed primary stability and osseointegration; inflammation and osseointegration; and systemic health, medications, and osseointegration.
After their respective breakout sessions, the chairs provided an overview of their groups’ outcomes, arranged for a 60-minute plenary presenter and a clinical presentation for the entire audience. A moderated and dynamic discussion followed the plenary speakers and the clinical case presentations.
The results of the summit, including three position papers authored by each of the work groups will be published in 2019 as a special edition of the International Journal of Oral & Maxillofacial Implants, AO’s official journal.
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