Bone resorption around dental implants can be caused by premature loading or repeated overloading. Vertical or angular bone loss is usually characteristic of bone resorption caused by occlusal trauma. When preasure from traumatic occlusion is concentrated, bone resorption occurs by osteoclastic activity.
In the natural dentition, bone reapposition would typically occur once the severe stress concentration is reduced or eliminated. However, in the osseointegrated implant system,after bone resorbs, it will not usually reform. Because dental implants can resist forces directed primarily in the long axis of the implant more effectively than they can resist lateral forces, lateral forces on implants shoud be minimized. Lateral forces in the posterior part of the mouth have higher impact and are more destructive than lateral forces in the anterior part of the mouth. When lateral forces cannot be completely eliminated from the implant prosthesis, efforts shoud be made to equally distibute the lateral forces over as many teeth and implants as possible.
