There are several techniques and materials available for implant site development. The choice may depend on a number of factors including osseous morphology, size of the defect, costs and surgeon or patient preferences. Autogenous bone has long been considered the gold standard of graft materials. The trend today is to reduce patient morbidity but still provide predictable outcomes. This lecture will discuss the use of various materials and methods for hard tissue augmentation including GBR, block grafting, ridge expansion and mesh grafting. The selection of techniques and materials will be presented using the Michigan Decision Tree for Horizontal and Vertical Bone Augmentation.

Implant therapy has undergone tremendous changes over the past decade. Ten years ago, it became increasingly clear that dental implants could create several challenges. The development of mucositis and peri-implantitis has gained more attention. Preventing these diseases is now a major focus. Today, we have a greater understanding of what must be done to establish stable clinical outcomes around dental implants. Additionally, immediate implant placement—which is characterized by shorter treatment times, reduced effort, and fewer surgical interventions has received increasing attention. While survival rates of immediately placed implants appear similar to those of delayed or late implant placements, aesthetic failures, such as mid-facial and interproximal soft tissue volume loss, remain common challenges. To address soft tissue deficiencies inpost-extraction sites, various clinical recommendations and a lveolar ridge preservation techniques have been described in the literature. These methods have shown a significant reduction invertical and horizontal defect formation following tooth extraction, compared to unassisted socket healing. However, systematic literature reviews consistently conclude that while post-extraction resorption of the a lveolar ridge can be limited, it cannot be entirely avoided. If the goal is to enable more implant patients to benefit from immediate implant placement in the future, preventing the loss of periodontal ligament and bundle bone after tooth removal is essential. Furthermore, it is crucial to pay close attention to the patients' wishes and expectations during implant therapy.

Implant therapy is still a lengthy and painful process, but patients often prefer a simpler therapeutic approach over a more complicated one. Therefore, we need to specifically address these requirements and expectations. We must develop a simplified implant therapy concept that provides functional and aesthetic outcomes that patients are accustomed to, while also reducing costs, treatment time, and morbidity. The key to the long-term success of dental implants is soft tissue management. One of the lectures during this day will address the latest trends in this field, taking into account that the blood supply around implants cannot be compared to the blood supply around teeth. Therefore, entirely new surgical strategies need to be discussed. All of these issues will be addressed during this lecture day.