Bone and Crescent Shaped Free Gingival Grafting for Anterior Immediate Implant Placement: Technique and Case Report

Immediate implant placement in a single staged approach, with or without provisionalization, can be advantageous in preserving gingival anatomy around dental implants. However, placing implants immediately in the changing alveolar bone of an extraction socket may result in progressive recession of the gingival labial margin over the implant restoration. This negative outcome may be overcome with enhanced labial thickness. Thicker labial gingiva and bone of the peri-implant tissue have shown to promote long-term stable gingival margins.

This article presents a simple surgical technique utilizing crescent shaped free gingival tissue and bone grafting to promote thicker labial bone and biotype. The surgical procedure as well as the biologic and clinical rationale is described. One-year post-restoration results are evaluated and show a stable, favorably positioned labial gingival margin at the implant site.

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