Is 14 years old too young for implant placement?

You have to wait until growth is complete or your implant will be submerged as the alveolus grows.The best way to tell is consecutive cephs, tracing a stable cranial point. Any other opinions? Thie is always a tough call!

Totally Agree with CRS . You met wait until cranial/maxillary/mandibular growth complete This is 18-19 in girls and 21 to 23? in males Wrt the ridge best to deal with it later as well as grafts without implant placement tend to resorb

You can look into placing a TAD of at least 10 mm length. A TAD is a non-integrating implant, made of titanium alloy, but polished. The crown portion is restored with a composite tooth. as the implant submerges, you back the implant out slightly. This implant will stimulate the bone and keep it from reabsorbing, and it will also keep your patient, with a healthy smile and attitude. Look at the orthodontic literature, for this information. Dr. Petry has a complete write up on this technique, as Dr. Jason Cope. Once the growth is complete, remove the TAD implant and got with your osseointegrated implant.

It is a proven fact that maxillary growth ceases at a much earlier age than we once thought. Each patient is different and there are fair ways to asses completion of growth. We have been performing osteotomies on some15 year olds, without any relapse. It's a shame the restorative dentist didn't attempt to save the tooth, with any measure possible, even if it was cracked. Maintenance of the tooth is the only way to prevent atrophy. It doesn't hurt that she has two healthy teeth on either side. The autogenous block graft, 4-5 months prior to implant placement works well in my hands . B Vinci Vinci oral and facial. Baton Rouge, La.

I am not sure what the big deal is here....14 years old is perfectly fine for placement of an implant. I do it all the time and I have not yet had one case where the implant was rejected. Also, most 14 years old have stopped most of their growth so go for it and have fun my friend !

Dr. Patel, Please send some of your 14 year old cases (show the implant restored at 14 and then show some photos at 18). I would like to see this. I do not buy this at all. Photos please.

Jon, I have placed implants on patients as yound as 10 years old. They are still itegrated today...5 years later. I don't need to send photos to prove this.

My twins are missing some adult teeth am I going to place until 20 , no way , no need to rush . Anyway my main priority for them is stem cell research and will collect and store stem cells from their final deciduos teeth. If no progress then some distraction orthodontics possibly to prepare the bony sites which will have not developed . In the western world ( US , UK etc ) the lawyers would get you as well. Peter

Peter, I as well, rest on the "the edge of my seat " for what is to come with stem cells. My daughter had an auto-immune reaction at 16 months, leaving her islet cells useless. I believe I may have a better chance than you, as far as replacing the missing body part. I would place the implants in my 17 year old twins, with out hesitation, but certainly understand your point. Has jimmy paige asked about me? Bv

thanks every body for your comments on my question. as we all know that growth of the centrals and laterals teeth complete at about 11-12 years of age, can any body tell me how implant placement at age 14 prevent skeletal growth or harm that part of bone locally?? dr.nase

In my opinion, you are not going to affect a growth center, but the question must be asked; are you prepared for skeletal/dental adaptation. I see cases of inappropriate ortho treatment and relapse, almost daily and who is to say this patient will not have a significant growth spurt. 15 is about as young as I would go, unless the patient is already significantly taller than their parents, or they have " caught up to their own shoe size". This is pure anecdote, or gastault. Call it what you may, "but it makes sense to me". Quote from wide spread panic! Anybody ???? Bv

in my opinion, 14 years is too early for implant placement, most of cases it leads to infraocclusion compromising both function and aesthetics, its better to wait till 2nd decade of life is complete, then take two cephalometric analysis with a year apart . till then maintaining the the space either prosthetic or orthodontic implant site preparation should be considered.

I no longer place and restore implants but wish to share my experience if you will have it. Many years ago, I placed implants in an 18 year old lass who wanted dental implants to replace her denture. She had lost the teeth due to being kicked by a horse. We had a good result and I was pleased with the photos. Imagine my surprise when she turned up at the age of 26 with the implant bridge looking submerged! The growth of the face is continual, though it slows down after 18 years and each case is an indidual. I would advise delaying implant placement as much as possible and have a contingency plan for the future if you place implants in the child or young adult especially if in the anterior of the mouth. Regards.

Super-eruption can occur until your death. There is a difference between maturation and adjacent drifting or adaptation. Needless to say, the young implant patient needs to be followed closely and usually requires some orthodontic intervention . Point taken, with some preferential qualification . If it matters, I am agreeing with the above statement . Bv

Retired,thank you for sharing your experience with us. Much appreciated. R Hughes

Hi BV sadly not , you looking for a gig ? They were the best.Yes the Stem cell dream , hopefully Peter

The patient is 14 years old and lacking bone width and at an age when wearing a flipper is most inconvenient and taxing to the teen ego. Juan Echeverri is correct. A TAD with the accompanying regular adjustment solves the problem in a real cool way. Think about it! An adjustable tooth that can be adjusted in tandem with the girl's continued growth for another 2-3 years or so. With bone maturity, it can be removed and a more permanent implant can then be placed..... and if the patient cannot afford it, can leave it there indefinitely. TAD reads Temporary Anchorage Device that is used in orthodontics for anchorage. It is an orthodontic bone screw that is an offshoot from the versatile minis that are used currently as transitionals, semi- permanents, long term applications, denture stabilization... you name it. The Italians were actually using it successfully long before Branemark's landmark lecture in Toronto 1982. Unfortunately, they do not publish in English. Yes,the land of Michelangelo and Leornado da Vinci... please pay your dues. Branemark popularised the two piece tooth sized screw implant and after that, everyone copied him. We should not knock minis without paying due respect and appreciation. In this particular case, Juan has pointed out the treatment of choice in this case, together with Dr Petry and Dr Cope. I have done it in cases where there is deficient bone and there may be the necessity to adjust the tooth in tandem with the child's growth. Submergence is a real problem in younger patients but adjustable minis aces them. In cases of ectodermal dysplasia I have used it. http://smalldentalimplants.blogspot.com/p/transforming-life-for-better.html

Dr. Chow, I would bet 98 % of us have never used a TAD. I read almost daily and have yet to see a single compelling article that would encourage me to approach this situation in such a fashion. Cessation of growth followed by an implant or autogenous block graft, followed by the implant has worked for 20 years with little or no problem. Yes the grafts resorb sometimes as much as 50%, but with this gestalt, most of us over graft. Intermembranous bone and a minimum of two screws, has stood "the test". Bv

BV. Innovation and breaking new ground made America great and is a great inspiration to the rest of the world. Grafts are great...... 20 years run of up to 50% resorption may be a tad too stretched. The world may be passing by. Check this out. Chow. http://smalldentalimplants.blogspot.com/2010/11/bone-climbing-up-mini-dental-implant.html

TAD idea is great....Thanks.... See u never stop learning Sam Jain, DMD Center For Implant Dentistry Fremont , CA

Dr. Chow, I will continue to investigate the possibilities of using anything that is supported by the "scientific method". Just as distraction of the alveolar process seemed to be a great addition to our armamentarium, we all know it is extremely impractical . Rapid palatal expansion, still hangs in there, so maybe the TAD is just "slow coming on", but I have seen it in the literature for at least 3 years and it still isn't " standard of care " in my neck of the nape". B Vinci

BV. You have hit the sweet spot. A spirit of openmindedness, humility and curiosity will enable the human race to regain what we lost due to the fall. Though, for the life of me, I canna figure out what, "neck of the nape means". Chow

To the question of interest: I would place the implant at 17 yrs of age. Expansion or an onlay graft may be in order or a single tooth blade implant that has a crown with lateral wings. I have not had that much experience with implants in teenagers. This is a black box area. I do respect the experience and comments of the above doctors.

I like the TAD idea with the patient understanding that it is a temporary solution not suppossed to integrate. I would only use it if there is plenty of bone not in a hypotrophic lateral incisor area, I'd be worried about losing bone due to movement or infection, especially in a thin biotype.

A good friend of mine has used TADs on teenagers who were tired of their "flippers" and who had completed orthodontic treatment...so they no longer had wire retained pontics. They and their parents understand that this is a temporary solution, until facial growth has ceased and implants are placed. His cases are less than 2 years out, but so far so good.