Host Immune Response to Dental Implants

Biocompatibility and biostability are the key properties of dental implants in the “oral environment,” in order to optimize their performance before or after functional loading. Uneventful host defense to dental implant insertion starts with a more favorable immune response that promotes wound healing around the jawbone and soft mucosal tissue. The growth of a biofilm on the surface of an implant is an igniting factor of the inflammatory response of the surrounding peri-implant tissues. At an initial stage, peri-implant mucositis is established, whereas the spread of inflammation towards the supportive bone leads to peri-implantitis. The molecular content of peri-implant crevicular fluid (PICF) offers a medium for “measurable biological indicators” of peri-implant diseases and potentially new targets for the immunomodulatory treatment of peri-implant diseases. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.