Background: The purpose of the present study was to explore the major factors that can affect the decision to replace failed implants.
Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 194 patients who presented following dental implant failure during a 6-year period (2000 to 2006). The collected data included patient characteristics, failed implant characteristics, the anatomic status of the alveolar ridge after failure, and factors affecting the decision to avoid reimplantation. The study group included patients in whom the failed dental implants were replaced, whereas there was no reimplantation in the control group.
Results: Seventy-four patients (135 implants) made up the control group, and 120 patients (157 implants) made up the study group. The mean patient age was higher and the medical status was worse in the control group. The number of failed implants per patient was higher in the control group. The time between the diagnosis of failure and removal and between implant placement and removal were greater in the control group. The chances of a patient with minor bone loss undergoing reimplantation was 20 times greater (odds ratio, 20.4) than a patient with severe bone loss. The main patient-related reasons for avoiding reimplantation were the additional costs (27%), fear of additional pain (17.7%), and fear of a second failure (16.2%).
Conclusion: The removal of a failing implant as soon as it is diagnosed as hopeless will improve the chances for reimplantation.