A Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating Grafting the Facial Gap at Immediately Placed Implants

Immediate implant placement in extraction sockets requires management of postextraction alveolar resorption. This randomized controlled trial evaluated the facial alveolar bone dimension 10 months following immediate implant placement with or without the addition of anorganic xenograft at the time of flapless, one-stage placement of a sloped-platform implant. The primary outcome of facial crestal alveolar bone thickness revealed no difference in the mean dimension (no graft: 1.47 ± 0.85 mm; graft: 1.63 ± 0.71 mm; P = .950). Secondary outcomes, including pink esthetic score, were not different between the two groups. This study suggests that bone formation does occur along the facial surface of implants placed into extraction sockets.