Replacing Missing Teeth with Dental Implants in Pubescent Patients—A Case Report

Abstract

Tooth loss due to traumatic dental injury or congenital absence can cause functional and socialpsychological consequences in youth. Pubescent children with missing teeth are often targets for school bullying. The treatment modality chosen can impact their well-being during their formative years. Despite the high success rate in adult patients, implant placement in young patients is not common due to its ankylosed nature and concerns with possible infra-occlusion in the future. However, skeletal growth and remodeling is a continuous process throughout life and postponement of dental implant placement does not necessary prevent future complication or need for replacement. Dental implant placement should be considered as a viable treatment option for pubescent patients if all other conventional alternatives fail to alleviate patients' concerns both functionally and psychologically. This case report evaluates the considerations required to place dental implants in pubescent patients, as well as its advantages and disadvantages.

Navigating the clinical ambiguity of implant placement in two young pubescent patients: an insight from two case reports

“…Thilander et al studied 15 adolescents with 27 implants and observed a definitive infraocclusion and bucco-lingual discrepancy in all cases[9]. On the contrary, Wendy et al and coworkers hypothesized that eruption and remodelling is a continuous process and postponing the implant placement does not necessarily prevent future complications instead definitive tooth replacement during the formative years can have a tremendous positive impact on the well-being of the patient[10]. Oesterle et al and Cronin et al proposed that chances for implants placed in posterior maxilla in children can get submerged due to resorptive process and implant placement should be delayed till skeletal maturity[11,12].…”