Iñaki Cercadillo, director of the Ahoa Dental Clinic, is a specialist in immediate loading oral surgery and implantology, with more than ten years of experience in the sector. In addition to professional practice, he is an associate professor at the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit of the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Barcelona. He is a member of the Spanish Society of Oral Surgery (SECIB) and of the IDIBELL biomedical research group at Bellvitge Hospital.
In the field of oral surgery, is Spain a benchmark?
From the academic and research point of view, Spanish universities have a reference position, with a high scientific production. We could also say that the quality of care received by the population is at a high level within the European Union. On the other hand, Spain is the only country, together with Luxembourg, that does not officially recognize this dental specialty. Currently the creation of the specialty has a consensus within academic institutions, scientific societies and professional associations. The Administration needs to take the final step.
He has just presented in Salamanca the preliminary conclusions of an immediate loading study, together with the Oral Surgery team of the University of Barcelona. At what stage of development is the study?
It is a work that evaluates the long-term results of a specific implant treatment, the complete rehabilitation of an arch, that is, the entire upper or lower part of the mouth at the same time. This study will serve to demonstrate the great efficacy of immediate loading and the high satisfaction of patients who have chosen this treatment. In Salamanca we present the immediate results of the treatment, within 3 months after the surgery and the placement of the fixed provisional teeth. The results have been spectacular: a 99,02% success rate of the implants. Only 4 implants failed out of a sample of 435 implants placed.
On the other hand, will the application of the new guided surgery protocol that you are developing guarantee greater safety in the intervention? Will it ensure better results?
Guided surgery is a resource for implant treatment that implies having the highest level of information for diagnosis and treatment planning, which means more precise and detailed treatment execution. It will not always bring advantages to the patient, but without a doubt the fact of reducing the surgical trauma makes the patient feel recovered after 24 hours, while with conventional procedures it takes between 5 and 7 days.
One of the main problems that we can find when a dental piece is implanted is its rejection. Will the application of the new procedures allow us to speak of a lower rejection rate?
Yes, the new procedures will allow us to obtain more predictable results with simpler treatments. For example, a very common situation is the lack of bone for implant placement, due to its atrophy. In this case, the 3D study, which is what virtual surgery allows us, will allow us to place the implants in the exact position according to the bone volume available at that time. Despite having extraordinary results in the last 10 years, we still want to improve the experience of our patients, reducing discomfort and treatment times.
The time factor is always important for patients, will new techniques reduce treatment times?
Yes that's how it is. Implant treatment has always been characterized by taking between 3 and 6 months for the patient to enjoy the result, fixed teeth. What immediate loading and virtual surgery allow us is to reduce the waiting time, that is, the same day that we place the implants we can place the fixed teeth. These will be temporary, but the patient will be able to eat and smile in complete comfort.
Any recommendations for patients who have to undergo this type of intervention?
That they look for a good trusted professional who will give them all the necessary information, the treatment options, the pros and cons. In short, the confidence of knowing that you are in good hands, a professional who uses top quality materials and who has proven experience. This is something that often escapes us, especially when the economic factor, so important today, makes us make the wrong decisions. For example, today the possibility of falling into these types of chains where they carry out aggressive advertising campaigns on prices and have young professionals with no experience practicing complex and advanced treatments, can be a problem. In fact, a high percentage of our treatments are aimed at solving problems derived from other centers, we see it more and more. This is important to know, because sometimes we forget that health is a precious asset that we must protect.