In the present work the structural behaviour of a mandible with a dental implant, considering a unilateralocclusion, is numerically analysed by means of the Finite Element Method (FEM) and the Boundary Element Method(BEM). The mandible, whose CAD model was obtained by computer tomography scans, is considered as completelyedentulous and only modelled in the zone surrounding the implant. The material behaviour of bone is assumed as isotropiclinear elastic or, alternatively, as orthotropic linear elastic. With reference to the degree of osteo-integration between theimplant and the mandibular bone, a partial osteo-integration is considered; consequently a nonlinear contact analysis isperformed, with allowance for friction at the interface between implant and bone. A model of a commercial dental implantis digitised by means of optical 3D scanning process and fully reconstructed in all its geometrical features. Specialattention is drawn to the mathematical reconstruction of the CAD model in order to facilitate the meshing process in theBEM environment and reduce the geometrical imperfections generated during the CAD to CAE translation process. Theresults of FEM and BEM analyses in terms of stress distribution on the mandible are compared in order to benchmark thetwo methodologies against accuracy and pre-processing efforts.
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