Medical Contraindications to Implant Therapy: Part I: Absolute Contraindications

In order to ensure implant success, it is essential to select patients who do not possess local or systemic contraindications to therapy. Hence, it is the purpose of this paper to review the medical diseases that reportedly preclude conventional dental implant treatment. Absolute contraindications to implant rehabilitation include recent myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular accident, valvular prosthesis surgery, immunosuppression, bleeding issues, active treatment of malignancy, drug abuse, psychiatric illness, as well as intravenous bisphosphonate use. Any of these conditions bar elective oral surgery, and require judicious monitoring by the physician as well as the dental provider. Noncompliance to the suggested protocol may, in the worst possible case, result in patient mortality.