A chemical that would effectively dissolve dental plaque will be the next revolutionary discovery in dentistry. It would enable more people to enjoy their teeth for the rest of their lives. For now, there is the practicality of dental implants in dentistry.

Osseointegration is what enables implants to become a practical reality. Osseointegration is the formation of a direct interface between an implant and bone, without intervening soft tissue. The ability of bone to directly connect with an inert alloplastic material without intervening soft tissue is what enables osseointegration to become possible.

Osseointegration was first discovered by Per-Ingvar Br錸emark, Swedish orthopedic surgeon and research professor, whom some called the "father of modern dental implantology". Osseointegration was accidentally discovered when he found out that titanium alloplastics placed into the femoral bones of rabbits could not be removed because it had engrafted itself into the bone.

This discovery was not made in the 20th century, or even in the century before that. The technique of osseointegration was known in the Mayan civilization some 1,350 years ago. The ancient Egyptians also knew about this technique of grafting bone into titanium.

In studying the effects of engrafted metals placed in proximity to bones, Br錸emark found that the bones attached themselves firmly to the metals. Br錸emark carried this experiment further using both humans and animals and the result proved the same: osseointegration occurred between the metal and the bone.

Other researchers followed Br錸emark. Dr. Leonard Linkow was the first to apply osseointegration to dental implantation. Dr. Linkow was known to have performed 19,000 implants. By the time he retired in 2002, he had written 12 books on dental implantation and had produced 36 patents.

Osseointegration is not only applicable in dental implantation but in many important fields of medicine. It is the most significant breakthrough in orthopedics and dentistry in modern times.

Br錸emark persuaded a Swedish arms manufacturer, Bofors AB, to manufacture titanium implants for use in dentistry. To date, the company has manufactured more than 7 million implants. Many dentists have taken note of this technology and are eagerly recommending it to their patients. Hence the future promises an explosion of dental implantation as progressive dental clinics are recommending this new dental breakthrough in technology to their patients. Because of the success of dental implantation, hundreds of companies have joined the foray due to the relatively simple technology involved.

Crucial to osseointegration is the development of x-ray computed tomography. This is the development of three dimensional photographs from two dimensional x-ray impressions using sophisticated computer simulations. X-ray computed tomography is a merger between sophisticated x-ray technology and sophisticated computer technology so that a three dimensional impression can be taken of an internal organ. A good picture of the bone where the implant would be placed so that osseointegration can take place is necessary for an implant procedure to be performed.

X-ray computed tomography is used in many applications in medicine, not just dentistry. Osseointegration was used to cure ear troubles and even eye defects. The widest use of osseointegration is in orthopedics where new possibilities of osseointegration are being discovered. The future of further procedures based on osseointegration looks promising indeed.

Because of the widespread popularity of dental implantation, the training of dental implantation dentists has been undertaken in many dentistry courses. To date, only Great Britain has set legislation in place to regulate the practice of dental implantation. In all countries of the world, the regulation of dental implantation is a private affair between the dentist and the patients.