Objectives The aim of this review was to search the literature for the existing evidence of re-osseointegration after treatment of peri-implantitis at contaminated implant surfaces. Material and Methods A search of PubMed as well as additional hand search of articles were conducted. Publications and articles accepted for publication up to November 2008 were included. Results A total of 25 animal studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria for this review. Access surgery with closed healing has been observed to positively influence the rate of re-osseointegration when compared with non-surgical decontamination of the implant surface with open healing. Open debridement including surface decontamination may result in re-osseointegration and this integration was more pronounced on rougher than on smooth implant surfaces. The adjunctive use of regenerative procedures resulted in varying amounts of re-osseointegration. Conclusions Re-osseointegration is possible to obtain on a previously contaminated implant surface and can occur in experimentally induced peri-implantitis defects following therapy. The amount of re-osseointegration, varied considerably within and between studies. Implant surface characteristics may influence the degree of re-osseointegration. Surface decontamination alone can not achieve substantial re-osseointegration on a previously contaminated implant surface. No method predictably accomplished complete resolution of the peri-implant defect.