Objective- The aim of this review is to evaluate the overall success, morbidity and patient acceptance of different surgical techniques used for implants placement by augmentation and nonaugmentation of deficient edentulous alveolar ridges. Method- A series of cases managed in Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery along with the recent available literature from year 2000 to 2016 were selected through an electronic and manual search of databases. The following procedures were considered and categorized into two groups: a) Implant placement following alveolar augmentation- onlay bone graft, guided bone regeneration, direct sinus lift, alveolar distraction osteogenesis, alveolar ridge split. b) Implant placement without alveolar augmentationshort implants, zygomatic implants, tilted implants, alveolar nerve repositioning. Results and Conclusion- Significantly greater bone height/width gain has been reported using direct sinus lift and distraction osteogenesis. Patient acceptance of the procedure was found better with short implants and tilted implants while poor with onlay block graft and distraction osteogenesis. Analyses of studies did not reveal differences between short (6-9 mm) and conventional (≥ 10 mm) rough-surfaced implants regarding their survival as well as primary stability. Preference must be given to those treatment modalities which are easier to execute, involves less surgical invasion, hasminimal risk of complications, and give satisfactory results within the shortest time frame. Separate dimension of patient medical condition and his ability to cope up with the procedure also needs to be judged before decision making.
