The Effect of Interimplant Distance on the Height of the Interimplant Bone Crest When Using Platform-Switched Implants

A distance of more than 3 mm between two adjacent standard implants has beenshown to preserve the interproximal bone peak, resulting in only 0.45 mm ofresorption. The purpose of this study was to determine whether use of the plat-form-switching technique would change the bone resorption patterns betweenadjacent implants placed less than 3 mm apar t. Radiographic studies of boneresorption around 41 pairs of implants placed less than 3 mm apar t in 37 patientswere carried out. Mean vertical bone resorption was 0.62 mm, and the mean hori-zontal component was 0.60 mm. The bone peak that extended coronally beyondan imaginary line connecting the two implant-abutment interfaces was measured,and the mean bone height preservation above this interimplant line was 0.24 mm.