Is there an association between dental implants and squamous cell carcinoma?

Introduction The complications associated with dental implants are numerous, most of them of an inflammatory nature; nevertheless, some isolated cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) have been found in the vicinity of the implants. The objective of the present article is to know whether there is an association between dental implants and the development of OSCC.Method and materials A search was carried out in Medline, Tripdatabase and Cochrane with the keywords 'dental implants' AND 'squamous cell carcinoma', and 'dental implant complications' AND 'squamous cell carcinoma.' The criteria for inclusion were articles published in English that dealt with the possible carcinogenic effects of implants and the possible malign transformation of oral lesions after the insertion of the implants. For the analysis, cases were used in which an OSCC had appeared in the peri-implantary mucosa.Results After an initial search, 269 articles were selected, of which 197 were excluded as not being directly related to the subject. Finally, 45 articles were selected, with 23 of them being used in the analysis. In these, 46 cases of OSCC in the vicinity of implants were discussed.Discussion Chronic inflammation in itself can lead to a malign transformation of the oral tissue, while in other cases it is caused and modulated by carcinogens, genetic factors or inherent factors in the patient, or by the dental implants.Conclusions It is not possible to establish a cause-effect relation between the implants and the development of OSCC. Its presence can be confused with peri-implantitis, so that in the cases where it appears suddenly, does not respond to conventional treatment and/or there is anaesthesia or paresthesia, it is advisable to do a biopsy. It is important to make an adequate selection of the patient and reduce or eliminate the risk factors. The findings of the present review are based on case study level of evidence, so meta-analysis is needed to further draw from these results.