The inlay osteotome sinus augmentation technique for placing short implants simultaneously with reduced crestal bone...

To display an inlay technique of osteotome sinus floor elevation using a trephine combined with simultaneous short implant placement where the residual bone height (RBH) is less than 5 mm, as well as to evaluate the clinical effect in a prospective study.

Fifty short implants were installed in 32 patients in the severely atrophic posterior maxilla immediately after sinus floor elevation between January 2010 and October 2012. An inlay osteotome sinus augmentation technique using a trephine was applied in the operation. The mean residual bone height adjacent to or beneath the sinus was 3.34 mm, ranging from 0.96 mm to 4.96 mm. It was rarely necessary to add graft material from bovine sources in this therapy. With the purpose of bite training and soft tissue reforming, the temporary crowns were fixed after 6 months. The final prostheses were restored 3 months later. The stability and osseointegration of the implants were clinically evaluated, also the bone height gain around the implants was measured.

The survival rate was 100% during the study period with this procedure. Each of the implants, loaded without pain or any subjective sensation, was clinically stable. No implants had detectable sinus membrane perforation during operation. The radiographic results demonstrated that the bone height gain was 5.38 mm after the surgery.

Based on the results and within the limits of the present study, it can be suggested that short implant placement in conjunction with this inlay osteotome sinus augmentation technique could yield predictable clinical results for edentulous posterior maxillary region with RBH less than 5 mm. Besides, from the clinical point of view, these techniques may reduce the indication for complex invasive procedures and simplify treatment in the posterior.