Endosseous Implant
Pronunciation: en-doh-OSS-ee-us
A dental implant fixture placed directly into the jawbone, serving as an artificial tooth root to support a prosthetic crown, bridge, or denture.
Full Definition
An endosseous (within-bone) implant is the most commonly placed type of dental implant, inserted into the alveolar or basal bone of the maxilla or mandible. The fixture is typically a threaded titanium or titanium-alloy post that achieves stability through osseointegration. In editorial contexts, 'endosseous' is frequently misspelled as 'endosteal' (which is an acceptable near-synonym) or confused with 'subperiosteal implant', a different design placed on top of the bone. Accurate use of this term is important in oral surgery, prosthodontics, and implantology manuscripts.
Usage
Usage note: 'Endosseous' and 'endosteal' are used interchangeably by many authors; both are acceptable but editors should apply the author's chosen form consistently. Note the double 's' in 'endosseous'.
In Context
- "A single endosseous implant was placed in the site of the extracted lower-left first molar." — Implant surgery operative note
- "The review compared survival rates of endosseous implants placed in grafted versus non-grafted posterior maxillae." — Systematic review abstract, implant dentistry journal