The impact of implants on dental practice. A review of the 1988 NIH Consensus Development Conference

The Consensus Development Conference process for the second time in ten years has come to grips with the dynamic field of oral implantology and has given it unquestioned scientific legitimacy and clear future clinical and research direction. Hopefully, for the millions of patients who could benefit from implant therapies, practitioners, hospitals, academic institutions, government agencies, health care insurance carriers, etc. will not wait to be forced to confront the reality of the success of implants, but they will begin or continue to restructure their practices, curricula, health care policies and benefits to provide the quality of life reasonably desired by our citizens.