Since the AIDS epidemic reared its head in the 1980s, the nature of this disease has quickly evolved from a devastatingly debilitating disease to one of chronicity. These patients are requesting for and are entitled to the optimal restorative treatment plans, many of which include dental endosteal implants. Several authors have delved into the realm of implantology in the HIV-positive patient, but there is only one study specifically for the AIDS patient (CD4 count <200 cells/μL), though patients were followed up for 6 months only [6]. The two criteria generally used to ascertain the immunological status and disease progression of the HIV-positive patient are (1) viral load and (2) CD4 count. Viral load although controversial in its ability to quantify disease progression is stratified as high (5000–10,000 copies/mL), low (200–500 copies/mL), and as a treatment goal to be less than 50 copies/mL. The CD4 count has become the mainstay to our infectious disease colleagues to tailor the medicinal regiment of the HIV-positive and AIDS patient. The prophylactic medications administered are based upon the particular range of the CD4 count. This value is used as a window to predict the type of organisms the patient is susceptible to. We stratified our study population by these means in an effort to note any such trends.

As the HIV-positive patient reaches the low end of CD4 spectrum and manifests AIDS, this puts the patient in a further immunocompromised state, opening the doors to a multitude of opportunistic infections and neoplasia. One may erroneously hesitate to offer this patient the full scope of dental restorative options because of lack of awareness. Intuitively, one may expect this person to be more prone to infection, possessing a poorer quality of bone and compromised healing from surgery. These concerns may lead the dental surgeon to favor non-surgical restorations, prophylactic antibiotics, and a lower expectation of success if implants are to be placed.