Vertical and Horizontal Guided Bone Regeneration around Endosseous Dental Implants: An 8-Year Follow-Up Clinical Case-Report

Guided bone regeneration (GBR) technique was developed to increase the bone volume in deficient implant sites. The aim of the present case-report was to evaluate the outcome up to an 8-year follow-up, of a mandibular bilateral alveolar ridge augmentation by means of horizontal and vertical GBR, in order to obtain a proper amount of bone around dental implants placed simultaneously with the alveolar ridge reconstruction. In both surgical sites, a 1:1 mixture of demineralized bovine bone mineral (DBBM) and autologous bone was used in association with a bioabsorbable collagen membrane or with a non-resorbable titanium reinforced e-PTFE membrane when horizontal or vertical regeneration were respectively needed. Clinical and radiological assessments were conducted once a year during the follow-up period up to 8 years. Results were comparable with those reported in the current available literature. A higher marginal bone resorption was radiographically observed after the first year of functional loading, whereas at the following examinations all the implants showed no further crestal bone loss.