OBJECTIVES: The concept of a single midline implant retaining a complete mandibular denture is controversially discussed among experts. Studies are rare in the literature, and commonly accepted recommendations for this treatment options are not available. This systematic literature review was performed to give an overview over the current literature on the single midline implant therapy for the edentulous mandible and to reveal whether this treatment option might be an alternative to commonly accepted treatment modalities with more implants.

METHODS: A review of the literature published until 24th of May 2013 was conducted to identify in vivo studies on the single midline implant concept with a mean follow-up time of at least 3 months.

RESULTS: From the electronic search, 11 studies were finally included. After an observation period of 3-60 months, the implant survival rate ranged from 62.5 to 100 %. The most frequent prosthetic maintenance intervention was "activation of the matrix" followed by "repair of fractured denture base."

CONCLUSIONS: The concept of one single midline implant to retain a mandibular complete denture can be an alternative, especially for elderly patients. Immediate loading of the implants should be avoided, and the way of integrating the matrix into the denture base should be carefully considered.