Mini dental implants can be used to support crowns and partial and complete dentures in compromised edentulous sites. Lack of bone width or site length may be treated with mini implants. Mini implants have less percutaneous exposure and displacement that may reduce complications. Nonetheless, mini implants transmit about twice the load to the supporting bone and thus control of occlusal loading is important. In fixed prosthetics, rounded flat cusps, splinting, implant protective occlusal schemes and only placement in dense bone sites are features of successful mini implant treatment. With removable prosthetics, multiple mini implants may be needed for appropriate retention and load resistance. Maxillary lateral incisor and mandibular incisor sites may be best suited for mini implant treatment.Caveat: Past research of dental implants has been directed at standard sized implants. While mini implants are dental implants, indeed, they behave somewhat differently under functional load and the clinician should be circumspect and very judicious in their use.
