Accurate transfer of computed tomography (CT) based planning of dental implants into the surgical procedure, using a surgical template with integrated customized drill guide. By means of a multiplanar reconstruction of the patient's dental CT scan the future implant site was determined. This was accomplished by marking entrance and endpoint of the required osteotomy within the CT scan. During the CT scan as well as during surgical implant insertion a mount with radiopaque markers, attached to a vacuum-formed diagnostic template, was inserted into the patient's mouth. The markers were used to locate the mount within the CT. According to the CT-data based coordinates of the future osteotomy our software created a computer aided design (CAD) system macro. The macro defined a matching component part with integrated drilling duct, which could be inserted into the mount. This part was manufactured by means of stereolithography and completed with a titanium tube, to guide a pilot drill with a diameter of 2 mm. The osteotomy was then widened to insert the dental implant. Application to phantoms resulted in an accuracy better than 0.5 mm in the direction of the CT sections and better than 1 mm perpendicular to them. The method was successfully applied to provide a patient with two adjacent implants. Schlagwörter: accurate implant placement, surgical template for dental implant, planning of dental implant surgery, CAD-CAM template, drill guide