Knowledge and attitude to dental implant placement amongst a group of Nigerian dentist

BACKGROUND: The perceptions and experiences of dentists from different specialties on the use of dental implant and its applications can be instrumental in its use exhaustively. OBJECTIVES: To determine the opinions and experiences of a population of Nigerian dentists towards dental implant. METHODS: Data for the study were collated using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire assessed the familiarity of the participants with various implant systems, their designs, sizes and loading as well as the provision of replacement for missing teeth. RESULT: The estimated functional life of an implant was reported to be less than 5 years by 2.5% of the respondents; 5 to 10 years by 11.3% of the respondents; 10 to 20 years by 26.3% and more than 20 years by 28.7% of the respondents while 31.3% had no idea about the estimated functional life of an implant. Exposure and experience with dental implants were low as only 30.0% of the respondents had attended any dental implant course/training with 95.0% of the respondents expressing the opinion that they did not have enough training in dental implantology. CONCLUSION: The exposure and experience with dental implants was low among the respondents.