The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of favorable anatomy for palatal emergence of an immediate flapless implant in the maxillary central incisor post-extraction site. Implants were virtually placed into maxillary central incisor sites using 3-dimensional implant planning software. Following a strict implant placement criterion to keep a safe distance to the buccal plate and other anatomical structures, sockets were assessed to determine their suitability for an implant emerging from the palatal aspect. From 321 patients included in this study, 62.3% presented a suitable socket anatomy for an immediate implant to be placed with an angulation suitable for a screw-retained crown. In 29% of the cases, the implants had to be labially tilted to maintain a minimum distance to the buccal plate; 8.7% were unsuitable for immediate implants due to anatomic limitations. The position and angulation for an immediate implant in the maxillary central incisor socket should be carefully assessed preoperatively with 3-dimensional images, as many sites will not be candidates for a palatal emergence and thus a screw-retained restoration.
Keywords: cone beam computerized tomography; immediate implant; prosthetic emergence.