General Membership Meeting: The Influence of Prosthetic Designs on Peri-implant Tissue Health

There has been a significant increase in the prevalence of dental implants. Despite the effectiveness of dental implants, there have been an increasing number of patients presenting with peri-implant bone loss. While the etiologies of peri-implant bone loss are multifactorial, a growing body of evidence suggests substantial connections between the state of peri-implant health and the design characteristics of the implant suprastructures in the persistent presence of oral biofilm. Implant positioning and prosthetic designs have been suggested to play a significant role in influencing the peri-implant marginal bone level. Without an optimal strategy to manage these prosthetic designs and implant suprastructures, the risk of peri-implant bone loss may escalate, potentially leading to unfavorable outcomes like peri-implantitis.

By the completion of this course each participant should be able to:

1. Understand the principles of ideal implant positioning.

2. Recognize the influence of prosthetic designs on peri-implant health.

3. Analyze the relationship between implant positioning and compensatory prosthetic designs, highlighting the biological implications of non-ideal prosthetic designs on peri-implant soft and hard tissue stability.

Biography:

Dr. Guo-Hao (Alex) Lin, DDS, MS, is a Diplomate and examiner of the American Board of Periodontology (board certified periodontist) and an ITI Fellow. Currently he is an Associate Professor and the Director of the Postgraduate Periodontics Program at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Dr. Lin is a recipient of several awards from the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP). He has published more than 90 research articles in peer-reviewed journals and contributed to several book chapters. His research focuses on evidence-based dentistry and implant-related clinical trials.