At the current time, there is no consensus about the frequency of dental implant maintenance. Two important parameters that will help decide the frequency are:
- The health of patient’s overall dentition
- The health of the peri-implant tissue
The following guidelines will assist in deciding the frequency of implant maintenance:
- Patients with no signs of inflammation around both implants and natural teeth – twice a year
- Patients with generalized gingivitis, but healthy peri-implant tissue – twice a year
- Patients with compromised or incorrect prosthetic design – three to four times a year
- Patients with periodontal disease (past or present), but healthy peri-implant tissue – three to four times a year
- Implants with peri-implantitis require appropriate treatment for resolving the inflammation, potential infection and subsequent bone loss.
Peri-implantits presents with multiple etiological factors, therefore different treatment modalities are involved (to be discussed in future newsletter articles).
