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There are many factors to consider concerning immediate implant placement in the esthetic zone, particularly with regard to the biology of remodeling of the anterior maxillary buccal plate. Various techniques have been advocated to minimize alveolar and gingival resorption with immediate implant placement, including the use of particulate grafts in the facial horizontal defect and the use of connective tissue grafts. Full-thickness flaps, split-thickness tunneling, and small subepithelial connective tissue grafts (SCTGs) that are placed coronal to the crest are technique variations that could affect the amount of buccal plate resorption. This case series discusses technique options for autogenous SCTGs with immediate implant placement.

The authors compared the accuracy and time efficiency of a simplified index called the Plaque Assessment Scoring System, or PASS, and the O'Leary Plaque Control Record. Using both indexes, they examined 35 participants. They found a strong correlation between the results achieved with each method. They also noted that the mean time required to complete the PASS examination was considerably less than that needed to record the O'Leary index, 1.47 vs. 7.07 minutes, respectively.

Dental implant success today is judged not only by osseointegration but also by esthetic results. Cosmetic predictability can often be difficult to attain, and esthetic implant failures can be multifactorial. Once esthetic implant failures occur, many cannot be fully corrected. Some complications must be addressed by an interdisciplinary dental team. In this summary of case reports, surgical considerations are provided, including cases of facial asymmetry/recession due to facial implant placement or bone loss resulting from technique/treatment failures, as well as papillary deficiencies. Restorative considerations for correcting failures are also discussed.

Protecting the environment and health of the people by ensuring the integrity of all wells is one of the must-obey policies in Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC). SPDC has been the leading producer of crude oil in Nigeria for more than 50 years. SPDC produces from many brown fields. SPDC currently has an inventory of producing wells that have been shut in because of one form or another of wellbore integrity problems. In some cases, these wells were completed decades ago when HSE requirements were considerably less stringent than they are today and wells were completed without sub-surface or downhole safety valves. In 2003, a more stringent policy on non-integrity wells was introduced and led to an investigation of service providers for a more reliable rigless installation of safety valves or a more cost effective rig workover. However, most of the brown fields that encompass these wells are predominantly located in the Niger Delta both in the shallow waters offshore and in land locations including swamp areas. Many of the wells are located on small-unmanned production jackets which do not have the structural integrity to support even an electric line unit let alone a workover rig. In addition the current geopolitical situation in the Niger Delta is such that bringing in any heavy-duty equipment can be extremely difficult and highly uneconomical in most of these low producing wells. It was against this background that SPDC carried out a well integrity management campaign to examine the feasibility of some kind of economic intervention to bring these wells back onto production. In this paper the authors will examine in detail the prevailing situation, present details of the alternative solutions that were considered and describe a highly economic campaign that was put in place to rehabilitate some 40 wells and make available some 30,000 bopd of oil production, all without the use of major workover equipment.

To evaluate the success and failure rates over time of ITI implants placed in 3 private practices and used in a variety of clinical situations.ITI solid-screw implants (n = 5,526) were placed in 3 private practices and restored by a variety of clinicians. Numerous clinical scenarios were treated with the implants, which were in function for between 0 and 72+ months.After 72+ months the cumulative success rates were 94.8% for maxillary implants and 97.5% for mandibular implants. The overall cumulative implant success rate was 96.1%. Implants that failed to osseointegrate were included in the data as failures in the 0- to 12-month interval. The criteria of Albrektsson and associates were used to assess implant success or failure.The results, which were achieved in conjunction with numerous restorative clinicians, were comparable to those reported by other authors. The clinical viability of ITI implant use was thus reinforced.ITI solid-screw implants were a predictable treatment modality in 3 private practices for a variety of clinical applications.