The Chip on the Collar: A Fracture That Changed My Career
Written by: Dr. Aditi Nanda, BDS, MDS, AFAAID
Hey everyone, I’m Aditi. My journey with implant dentistry began during my post-graduation back in 2007. For years, like many clinicians, I practiced it in bits and pieces. It was functional, but it lacked a deeply structured, fundamental drive.
Then came 2021, a true watershed moment in my career. Shortly after joining the prosthodontic faculty at India’s premier dental institute, a resident came to me with a frustrating problem: a patient had reported with a loose crown for the third time in a single month.
We started with a basic clinical evaluation. It was a screwmentable single molar crown on a 4mm implant. Everything looked structurally intact, so we simply retightened the screw. But intuitively, I knew something was off. That evening, I dove into the literature, combing through articles to find a definitive answer. I eventually reached out to Dr. Iyer, with whom I was collaborating on a few academic projects. He gave me a crucial piece of guidance: "Take a radiograph the next time the patient comes in, and explore the crest of the implant with a Teflon-coated probe."
By absolute happenstance, the patient returned the very next afternoon; the crown was loose yet again. We immediately took the radiograph, and lo and behold, there it was: a distinct chip on the collar of the implant. It was my very first personal encounter with an implant fixture fracture.
In that exact moment, I realized my responsibility as a clinical supervisor had completely shifted. I wasn't just accountable for my own cases anymore; I was responsible for every single case walking through the department. It brought to mind the old saying: "To whom much is given, much is required." I knew I had to level up—and in doing so, my true path appeared.
I realized that the true magic of implant dentistry lies in a rock-solid foundation and absolute logic. Right around that time, a few pivotal pieces fell into place. A glimpse into the AAID MaxiCourse India, followed by a visit to Dr. Iyer’s implant facility in New Jersey, was an absolute eye-opener for me. Seeing the profound impact of organized education made me realize that the AAID was the missing piece to my puzzle.
Becoming an Academic Associate Fellow was like stepping through the wardrobe into Narnia! Despite the daily clinical challenges running in the background, I suddenly found myself collaborating with the leading minds in implant dentistry. Being in their company bridged the chasm from confusion to absolute clarity. This association opened doors I never could have imagined—from joining the communications team and serving as an adjunct faculty member for the JU online prosthetic didactics to now co-moderating the AAID Study Club alongside Dr. Iyer.
As the saying goes, "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." What I experienced wasn't just a shift in my career; it was a profound transformation of the entire ecosystem where I work. The clarity I found didn't just transform my individual practice; it ignited a massive ripple effect. Today, at AIIMS New Delhi, my residents can accurately identify high-stakes cases with lower clinical risk and guide cases toward predictable patient care. It has even completely restructured their mandatory research into clinically useful, highly impactful designs.
Ultimately, the greatest reward belongs to our patients, who now receive treatments defined by certainty and hope. The AAID didn't just sharpen my mind; it handed me the torch right when I needed it most. And as my residents and I chart new frontiers in dentistry alongside the AAID, we hope to keep spreading beautiful smiles, one smile at a time.
Thank you.
Dr. Aditi Nanda is a Prosthodontist and academician with over 16 years of experience, currently serving as an Associate Professor of Prosthodontics at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. She is a prolific researcher with close to 45 MEDLINE-indexed publications, 14 book chapters, and a co-editorship on the South Asia adaptation of Boucher's. She also served as an online Adjunct Faculty member at Jacksonville University, Florida (2024–2025), lecturing to dental residents.
Dr. Nanda holds elite international credentials, including membership in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (Glasgow), Associate Fellowship in the American Academy of Implant Dentistry (AAID), and a Diplomate from the World Congress of Oral Implantology. She serves on the AAID Communications Committee, reviews for the AAID Foundation Research Grant (AAIDF 2025), and is a peer reviewer for five MEDLINE-indexed journals, including the Journal of Oral Implantology and Indian Journal of Dental Research. Nationally, she has contributed to the Bureau of Indian Standards, helping set quality standards for prosthodontic equipment and dental materials across India.