The Transoral Endoscope-Assisted Approach for Removal of a Dental Implant Displaced into the Maxillary Sinus: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

PURPOSE: A dental implant displaced into the maxillary sinus can be removed transorally or transnasally. There is no report investigating any potential positional limitations by the transoral endoscope-assisted approach. The implant's location within the maxillary sinus was reviewed to clarify indications for this approach. CASE REPORT: A 36-year-old man was referred to us for removal of a dental implant displaced into the right maxillary sinus. The implant changed position preoperatively, but the transoral endoscope-assisted approach proved successful. METHODS: A literature search through October 2020 was performed in PubMed for cases of implant removal from the maxillary sinus via transoral endoscope-assisted and transnasal endoscopic approaches. RESULTS: Sixty-two prior cases were identified, 20 cases by the transoral endoscope-assisted approach and 43 cases by one or two transnasal endoscopic approaches, including one duplicate case. There were no cases in which the implant was not identified by the transoral endoscope-assisted approach, but two cases in which the implant had moved to an unfavorable location and was not identified by only the initial transnasal endoscopic approach. CONCLUSION: Clinicians can preferentially choose the transoral endoscope-assisted approach, considering the possibility of unfavorable repositioning of the displaced implant within the maxillary sinus.