HONG KONG/LEIPZIG, Germany: Dental implants in the Philippines are on the upswing, participants of an implantology conference in the capital Manila have agreed. They also supported plans of dental colleges and universities throughout the country to include implantology as part of their curriculum by 2011. Currently, there are an estimated 400-500 dentists placing implants in the Philippines.

The conference, which was organised by the Philippine Academy of Implant Dentistry (PAID ), drew almost 200 participants to Manila. Amongst others, latest technologies and treatment methods in dental implantology were discussed including implant supported prosthetic rehabilitation and maxillofacial reconstruction. Due to the demand, representatives of the organisation have announced to organise more seminars with a higher share of foreign speakers around the country in order to advance the specialty.

“The economic prospects are very good,” said Dr Carlos Buendia, President of the PAID. “With the influx of dental implant companies offering affordable implant fixtures and dental laboratories catering to dental implant prosthesis, the overall cost for the dentist has gone down.”

In the last few years, more and more implant companies have entered the Philippines. Despite dental awareness programmes and dental tourism campaigns, its dental implant market is still behind other markets in the region, such as Singapore, Taiwan or Hong Kong.