Short implants are frequently placed in the posterior area in order to avoid complementary surgical procedures. However, clinicians need to be aware that short implants with length less than 8mm present greater risk of failures.

The coagulum that filled the void distal to the implant after simultaneous elevation of the sinus floor gave rise to newly formed bone. However, the void occupied by the coagulum shrank substantially. The Schneiderian membrane did not provide a basis for new bone formation in the early phase of healing.

The purpose of this systematic review was to perform a comparative analysis of the use or not of graft material in maxillary sinus lift surgery. Relevant studies published in the last 10 years were identified through a search of the PubMed/MEDLINE, ScienceDirect, and Cochrane Library databases and were assessed against the study inclusion and exclusion criteria. The initial search resulted in 1037 articles. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 16 articles remained. Four hundred and thirty-six patients were followed up over a postoperative period ranging from 6 months to 11 years. In total, 868 implants were installed in 397 maxillary sinuses. The implant survival rate was 96.00% for surgeries performed without graft material and 99.60% for those in which biomaterial was used, within a follow-up period of 48 to 60 months. In conclusion, maxillary sinus lift surgery, with or without graft material, is a safe procedure with a low complication rate and predictable results.

The aim of this study was to compare the use of beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) (chronOS) with autogenous bone grafts alone in maxillary sinus elevation surgery. The test samples were β-TCP alone, β-TCP mixed with autogenous bone grafts (1:1), and autogenous bone grafts alone. Twelve maxillary sinuses were grafted with β-TCP (group 1), nine with β-TCP+autogenous bone graft (group 2), and 12 with autogenous bone graft (group 3). After 6 months, biopsies were obtained concurrent to the placement of dental implants; these were subjected to histomorphometric analysis and immunohistochemical analysis for runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The average bone formation in group 1 was 46.3±11.6% in the pristine bone region, 47.6±9.9% in the intermediate region, and 44.8±22.1% in the apical region; in group 2, values were 35.0±15.8%, 32.5±13.7%, and 32.8±16.0%, respectively; in group 3, values were 43.1±16.0%, 31.0±13.0%, and 46.1±16.3%, respectively. Immunostaining of samples in group 2 showed high cellular activity and immature bone; this differed from groups 1 and 3, in which mature bone was demonstrated. Thus, this study showed that β-TCP presents the same behaviour as autogenous bone graft, which makes it a good bone substitute.