Immediate versus conventional loading in short and ultra-short implants: a protocol design.

Background: After tooth extraction, inevitable resorption of the postextraction socket occurs. Placing an immediate implant does not fully preserve the bone integrity of the socket. Preservation techniques cannot avoid alveolar resorption. In residual atrophies, bone augmentation techniques are necessary for subsequent rehabilitation with implants. The aim of this study was to propose a protocol of immediate loading in short implants as an alternative to bone augmentation techniques, comparing the immediate versus conventional loading, evaluating peri-implant bone loss, the biological and prosthetic complications, the survival of the implant and prosthesis and the patient satisfaction after one year.

Methods: This study consists of a randomized controlled clinical trial. For implant planning, periapical intraoral radiographs and Cone Beam Computed Tomography will be used. All patients will receive Straumann Group^® (Basel, Switzerland) titanium-zirconia implants with a 4.1mm or 4.8mm diameter and a 4 mm or 6 mm length.

Results: The expected results show similar or even minor bone loss, biological and prosthetic complications, identical or even better survival of the short implants with immediate loading, and greater satisfaction.

Conclusions: Short implants demonstrate similar survival to conventional length implants, with comparable or even minor biological and prosthetic complications and bone loss. Immediate loading gives satisfactory results similar to conventional loading, with similar biological and prosthetic complications, and generally depends on poor hygiene levels. Bone loss is even less, and the satisfaction increases.