Findings from a recent survey of dentists in Japan have revealed that in 2011 one in four had seen patients with health complications due to dental implant treatment. Over 90 per cent of the dentists surveyed also reported having treated patients last year with problems related to implants placed by a colleague.
Pointing to the general risks of implant procedures, the Director of the Japanese Academy of Maxillofacial Implants told the Asahi Shimbun newspaper that some of the cases might be related to dentists using clinically unsuitable methods or technologies. He called on patients suffering from problems after implant treatment to seek medical help at dental clinics immediately.
In Asia, Japan has the second highest penetration rate of dental implants after South Korea currently. According to figures from the AstraZeneca Group in London, UK, almost half a million implants were placed in the country in 2006, a figure that experts say has further increased in recent years, despite the recession and March 2011 tsunami.
Business figures from leading market players suggest that Japan’s dental implant market is growing by more than two per cent annually.
The first dental implants were placed in Japan in the early 1970s. Although not covered by national dental insurance, the procedure has become a widely accepted treatment method among patients and dentists. The International Team for Implantology, a Straumann affiliate and one of the world’s largest providers of dental implant education, recently held its first Japanese congress in Tokyo in June.
