Fifty years of interdisciplinary site development: lessons and guidelines from periodontal prosthesis

Just as "osseointegration" became synonymous with successful restoration of function in the fully edentulous patient during the 1980s, the term "implant site development" has become intricately associated in the 1990s with the techniques used to achieve esthetic results with implants in the partially edentulous patient. This article explores the roots of the concept of site development within the philosophy and principles of periodontal prosthesis. In addition, the myriad of techniques that are presently collectively referred to as site development are systematically classified into a sequential four-tiered approach that optimizes their efficient application as well as overall success.