IMMEDIATE LOADING OF DENTAL IMPLANTS PLACED IN SEVERELY RESORBED EDENTULOUS MAXILLAE RECONSTRUCTED WITH LE FORT I OSTEOTOMY AND INTERPOSITIONAL BONE GRAFTING

Background: Reconstruction and rehabilitation of atrophic maxillae with bone grafts is a lengthy and demanding procedure. This study reports the immediate loading of 50 implants placed on six extremely atrophied edentulous maxillae reconstructed with Le Fort I osteotomy and iliac bone grafting. Methods: Six patients, aged 49 to 68 years, with severely atrophied maxillae were treated with Le Fort I osteotomy and iliac bone grafting to allow for implant-borne prosthetic rehabilitation. Four to 5 months thereafter, 50 implants (seven to 10 per patient) were placed in reconstructed maxillae and immediately functionally loaded with a screw-retained definitive prosthesis. The patients were followed by clinical and radiographic examinations for 24 months after prosthetic loading. Results: The grafting procedure and healing period before implant placement were uneventful in all patients. Two implants were lost within 2 months after prosthesis insertion in two patients, with an overall survival rate of 96%. The prostheses success rate was 100%. At the end of the follow-up period, all remaining implants appeared clinically healthy; crestal bone loss was >1.7 mm for six implants, resulting in a cumulative success rate of 84%. Conclusion: Immediate loading of implants placed after Le Fort I osteotomy and interpositional iliac bone grafting could be considered a viable protocol to rehabilitate extremely atrophied edentulous maxillae, considerably reducing the treatment time.