Does the adjunctive use of statins provide additional benefits to nonsurgical periodontal treatment? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Adjunctive therapeutic agents may be used to improve the response to nonsurgical periodontal therapy. Local delivery of statins (simvastatin, artovastatin and rosuvastatin) is a promising adjunct to scaling and root planing (SRP). Thus, the aim of this review is to evaluate if adjunctive local delivery of statins is more effective than SRP alone. Randomized clinical trials that presented a test group evaluating local delivery of statins as adjuncts in healthy, diabetic and smoking patients were included. Medline and the Cochrane library database were searched up to November 2016. Random effects meta-analyses were conducted for pocket depth change and clinical attachment gain. One hundred and twenty-five studies potentially related to the aim of this review were screened, but only 10 were included. The majority of the trials reported additional clinical benefits in the groups that were treated with adjunctive local delivery of statins. Pooled calculations showed that local delivery of statins resulted in additional reduction of pocket depth and clinical attachment gain in healthy people, smokers and diabetic patients. Local statins may offer additional clinical benefits to SRP, even in smokers and diabetics.

Dental implant loss in older versus younger patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate implant loss in younger and older patients. An electronic search of four databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, SCOPUS and the Cochrane Library) was undertaken until May 2016 without time restriction and was supplemented by manual searching. Prospective cohorts were included if they met the following criteria: (i) presence of an exposed group (older subjects) with a minimum age of 60 years; (ii) presence of a control group (younger subjects) with a maximum age of 59 years; and (iii) outcome data considering implant survival or loss. Meta-analyses were performed to evaluate the impact of ageing on implant failure. Of 4152 potentially eligible articles, four were included in the qualitative analysis and quantitative synthesis. The pooled estimates suggest that the risk of implant loss in older patients is not significantly higher (RR = 0·92; 95% CI 0·43-1·96, P = 0·83) when compared to younger subjects. This systematic review suggests that age is not a limiting factor for dental implant therapy.

The influence of statins on osseointegration: a systematic review of animal model studies.

Recent research data have suggested that the beneficial action of statins in bone tissue could improve osseointegration around titanium implants by increasing the bone implant contact (BIC), the expression of bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the influence of statins on osseointegration of titanium implants in animal studies. Two reviewers searched independently four databases (MEDLINE, SCOPUS, WEB OF SCIENCE and the Cochrane Library), until March 15, 2016. The Cochrane Collaboration's Tool for Assessing Risk of Bias was used to assess the quality of the included studies. Papers that reported outcome data considering bone implant contact (BIC), mechanical tests or other histological evaluation were eligible for inclusion. 312 references were eletronically retrieved, 21 full-text papers were screened and 17 studies were included. Thirteen trials presented histomorphometry data on bone implant contact measures. All of them showed a significant improved BIC when using statins. Despite data from included studies point to beneficial effects, standardized studies and with less risk of bias, are needed to clarify the role of statins on osseointegration.