An interview with Dr. Alan Winter

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9) Please describe the current state of implantology: Implantology is a slow growing field in the US. While it is the standard of care for single tooth replacements, many dentists do not recommend it simply because they are afraid of what they don’t know & they don’t know enough about implants to recommend them. For example, implants are first being introduced into the dental schools. You would think that after 30 years every school would teach them & every dental student would have some familiarity with them, but that is not the case. For this reason, as our curriculum evolves, http://www.expertdentalce.com will provide a valuable role in enhancing dentists’ education AFTER they leave dental school.

10) Please describe the current state of bone grafting in implantology & Periodontology: More & more grafting is being performed around implants. There are more biologics to choose from & results are getting better & better. Grafts are a mainstay for current therapy.

11) Implantology in medically compromised patients especially diabetics. Your comments: Implants can be inserted in well-controlled diabetics. I see no difference in their healing. Smokers on the other hand, while they may have the same success rate for implant placement, when they have a problem in healing, their problems are exponentially worse than in non-smokers.

12) The future of implantology: The future of implantology will continue to grow & change. We are a long way from providing implants that once inserted, will not have future problems. As time goes on, we are learning about return of inflammation, peri-implantitis, crestal bone loss, etc. Manufacturers continue to alter the implant surface. I don’t think this is important or valuable. What is more important, & we are not there yet, is exactly where to place the implant, what the crown/implant interface should be, should we only have platform switching, do zirconia abutments work, & more. One trend that is occurring is that we now recognize that residual cements from implant crowns are causing problems that need to be addressed. We need to consider implants have vulnerabilities similar to teeth; they cannot be abused.
 

        

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