Each year, our implants issue offers a chance to step back and consider how rapidly this area of dentistry continues to evolve. From digital workflows and advanced imaging to new approaches for grafting and prosthetic design, the tools available to us today are making implant therapy more predictable, more efficient, and more accessible than ever before. Technologies such as CBCT, guided surgery, and modern digital design platforms have dramatically streamlined many aspects of implant treatment. Procedures that once required multiple analog steps can now be planned and executed with remarkable precision, often reducing chair time while improving accuracy.
In this issue, we explore several of the forces shaping the future of implant dentistry. One highlight is an article by Gregori M. Kurtzman, DDS, Robert A. Horowitz, DDS, and Charlie Decker, BS, examining the role of low-magnitude, high-frequency vibration in periodontal and implant therapy—an intriguing look at how biologic principles continue to influence the way we support long-term implant health.
I also would like to mention our recent roundtable, “The Future of Dental Diagnostics,” available at aegisdentalnetwork.com/tv/inside-dentistry-roundtable, in which I spoke with Cherilyn G. Sheets, DDS; Melissa Seibert, DMD, MS; and Lou Graham, DDS, about how emerging diagnostic tools are helping clinicians detect structural problems earlier and make more informed treatment decisions.
When I speak with patients about implants, I sometimes summarize the fundamentals in a simple, slightly tongue-in-cheek way: “It only takes two things to have implants—bone and money. And we can grow bone.” Dentists understand this reality well. Implant therapy is both a clinical decision and an investment, and honest conversations with patients about treatment value are part of responsible care.
Ultimately, the goal extends far beyond the mechanics of placing and restoring implants. As Christian Coachman, CDT, DDS, notes in his interview in this issue, dentistry must also consider the emotional dimension of treatment—the trust we build with patients and the confidence we help restore. When state-of-the-art implant care is delivered thoughtfully, it not only improves health and restores function, but also helps patients live fuller, more confident lives.
Robert C. Margeas, DDS
Editor-in-Chief, Inside Dentistry
Private Practice, Des Moines, Iowa
Adjunct Professor • Department of Operative Dentistry
University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
robert.margeas@conexiant.com
