Immediate provisional implant

A system for providing an interim dental prosthesis while allowing healing and osseointegration of two or more permanent implants anchored within a patient's mouth comprising:

• one or more provisional implants for anchoring generally adjacent the permanent implants, each said provisional implant comprising a threaded body segment having a maximum width of no more than about 3.5 mm, a flexible neck segment integrally formed with and extending from the body segment, the neck segment including a torque accepting feature, and an abutment integrally formed with and extending from the neck segment for receiving a dental restoration;
• and
• a temporary dental restoration configured to be supported upon the provisional implants such that such that it is supported by the provisional implants during the healing period while substantially preventing mastication forces from being exerted on said permanent implants.

A dental implant system for treating a fully or partially edentulous patient, comprising

• a plurality of permanent implants sized and adapted to be anchored within cortical bone in the patient's mouth;
• and
• a plurality of provisional implants sized and adapted to be anchored within the cortical bone at positions generally adjacent or between the permanent implants, each of the provisional implants being narrower than each of the permanent implants and comprising an integral abutment, a threaded segment and a flexible neck that lies between the abutment and the threaded section, whereby the provisional implants are adapted to receive and support a temporary dental prosthesis during the healing period for the permanent implants while substantially preventing mastication forces from being exerted on the permanent implants.