A prospective clinical study of immediate implant placement in the maxillary esthetic zone.

Abstract

Purpose: Immediate implant placement (IIP) offers several advantages, including minimizing hard and soft tissue deformation, reducing implant time and cost, and rapidly restoring tooth function. However, IIP is technically challenging due to the need to secure initial stability and limit functional loading during healing. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the clinical outcomes of a bone-level implant featuring a dual thread design-an upper U-shaped thread and a lower V-shaped thread-with an 11° internal hexagonal connection in IIP within the maxillary esthetic zone.

Methods: This study included 20 patients. Implants were inserted immediately after tooth extraction. Soft tissue changes were evaluated before tooth extraction (V0), after IIP (V1), at prosthesis delivery (V5), at a 3-month follow-up after prosthesis delivery (V6), and at a 1-year follow-up (V8). Bone dimensional changes were assessed at V1 and V8 using cone beam computed tomography, and the marginal bone level (MBL) was evaluated at V6 and V8 using 2-dimensional.

Results: Of the 20 patients, 3 dropped out due to osseointegration failure during the follow-up period. Although the horizontal dimensions of the soft and hard tissues decreased slightly, the gingival margin and MBL remained well maintained throughout the follow-up.

Conclusions: Within this limited dataset, the lower V-shaped thread enabled favorable initial stability in IIP, and the esthetic outcomes were positive-with minimal gingival recession and marginal bone loss. Long-term follow-up is required to fully assess the impact of thread design and connection on esthetics.

Trial registration: Clinical Research Information Service Identifier: KCT0008231.