PURPOSE

The purpose of this prospective study was to investigate the clinical success of a treatment protocol for the rehabilitation of edentulous posterior maxilla consisting of the positioning of short implants in combination with transcrestal sinus lifting, with the adjunct of pure (leukocyte-free) platelet-rich plasma, in order to reducing the risk of membrane perforation and other surgical complications.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 25 patients (65 implants) were treated. Pure platelet-rich plasma was used in the sinus membrane lifting procedure. Implants of 8.5 mm length or shorter were splinted through the prosthetic rehabilitation with one or more implants longer than 10 mm.

RESULTS

After a follow-up period ranging from 12 to 19 months (mean 14.4 months) after prosthetic loading, 23 patients (60 implants) were evaluated. Overall implant success and survival rates were 100% at 1 year follow-up visit. All prosthetic rehabilitations were successful and in function. After 1 year of loading, peri-implant bone loss averaged 0.34 ± 0.21 mm for 8.5 mm or shorter implants (n = 25) and 0.36 ± 0.30 mm for longer implants (n = 35) (overall mean 0.35 ± 0.25 mm) without significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.23).

CONCLUSIONS

The proposed treatment protocol is a viable option for the rehabilitation of edentulous posterior atrophic maxilla.