Objectives: When teeth are lost, dental implants contribute to improved oral function and quality of life. Limitations in dental implant placement arising from poor bone anatomy may be circumvented via alveolar ridge preservation (ARP). The aim is to evaluate the long-term impact of ARP on peri-implant health and the relationship with common risk indicators such as smoking and history of periodontitis.

Materials and Methods: One hundred and eight patients were enrolled in this retrospective cohort study with 308 implants. Of these, ∼41% were placed in bone sites that had previously received ARP with deproteinized bovine bone mineral xenograft. Association between baseline variables: ARP, age, gender, number of implants per patient, anatomical site, smoking, and previous history of grade III/IV periodontitis, and outcome variables: mucositis, peri-implantitis, implant loss, full-mouth plaque score (FMPS), full-mouth bleeding score, and marginal bone loss (MBL) was evaluated using both univariate and multivariate models.

Results: After 5 years, the overall survival rate was 93.7%. The occurrence of peri-implantitis was 21.3% and the extent of MBL was ~2.2 mm. Both peri-implantitis occurrence and MBL were comparable between ARP+ and ARP−. Smoking is associated with higher FMPS and MBL.

Conclusions: The findings indicate that peri-implant health can be maintained around dental implants for up to 5 years in ARP+ sites using Bio-Oss®. Smoking is a major risk indicator for peri-implantitis, whereas the association between history of periodontitis and the risk of peri-implantitis, based on this specific, well-maintained cohort and the specific implants used, remains inconclusive.