What Researchers Did
Researchers rehabilitated a 46-year-old male patient with an irradiated marginal mandibulectomy using immediately loaded basal implant-supported fixed prostheses and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
What They Found
The patient received 20 hyperbaric oxygen sessions before implant treatment and 10 more after, with 16 basal cortical screw implants inserted to support fixed prostheses. At the 2-year follow-up, no complications were observed, and the patient showed excellent peri-implant soft tissue health, increased bone-implant contact, and stable, well-functioning prostheses.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
This case report suggests that basal implants combined with hyperbaric oxygen therapy could be a viable option for rehabilitating complex mandibular defects in patients who have undergone radiation therapy. Such an approach may offer a fixed prosthetic solution, potentially avoiding bone grafting and reducing treatment time for eligible patients.
Canadian Relevance
This study has no direct Canadian connection.
Study Limitations
The primary limitation of this study is its design as a single case report, which limits the generalizability of the findings.