Training and education are key to the future

Fazeela Khan-Osborne explores the benefits of training in dental implants.

What is the future for dental implants? We know that more patients are interested in these treatments, to restore or replace a missing tooth or teeth. In my practice, I see people of all ages who have done their own research before coming to see us and know that a dental implant will give them back their smile, avoiding the need for a removable denture. Higher demand means that more dental teams will also need to become implant teams.

Whenever we talk about the ‘future’ of anything in dentistry, ‘digital’ is usually mentioned. Certainly, digitised processes, from impression taking to 3D printing, offer numerous advantages to the field of dental implantology. Digital technologies do tend to make all treatments faster and more comfortable for the patient, and, especially if you are delivering care to elderly people, there are obvious benefits here. We are also seeing tools and equipment that enable more precise placement, reducing the risks of complications and failure.