Implant treatment in an urban general dentistry residency program: a 7-year retrospective study

Survival rates of multiple implant designs placed in various clinical situations average more than 90%. However, little data have been published on the survival rates of implants placed in dental residency programs. This study reports on the outcome of dental implants placed by first-year general dentistry residents in the University of Florida College of Dentistry-Jacksonville Clinic. The patients for this study received both surgical and restorative implant therapy from 1998 to 2005. A total of 263 patients (147 women, 116 men) were treated with dental implants. On average, a patient was 55.5 years old and received 3 implants. A variety of simple and complex restorative procedures were performed. Advanced general dentistry residents in conjunction with supervisory faculty treated all cases. The cumulative implant survival was 96.6%. Follow-up varied from 6 months to 7 years after placement. Cases included implants not yet loaded as well as implants loaded for 6 years or more. The findings of this study compare favorably with published studies and were unexpected in light of the residents' limited clinical experience.