Effect of microthreads on coronal bone healing of narrow-diameter implants with reverse-tapered design in beagle dogs.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of microthreads on the coronal bone healing of narrow-diameter implants with reverse-tapered design. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 52 implants were classified into two groups according to presence or absence of coronal microthreads, the reverse-tapered narrow-diameter implant (RTN) group, and the reverse-tapered narrow-diameter implant with microthreads (RTNM) group. The implants were installed in split-mouth design in the edentulous mandible of six dogs. Three animals were sacrificed at 4 weeks and three at 8 weeks. Resonance frequency analysis, bone measurement using microcomputed tomography (micro-CT), removal torque test, and histometric analysis were performed. RESULTS: No significant differences in implant stability quotient value were observed between the groups at baseline, 4 weeks, or 8 weeks. Bone measurement using micro-CT showed that bone-implant contact volume (BICV) and bone-implant contact volume ratio (BICVR) in the coronal part of RTNM were statistically higher than those in RTN at 4 and 8 weeks. Histometric analysis showed statistically higher bone-implant contact length (BICL) in the coronal part of RTNM than in RTN at 4 weeks; however, bone-implant contact ratio (BICR) was not significantly different between the groups. At 8 weeks, the BICL and BICR did not differ significantly between the groups. Removal torque test showed no significant differences between the groups at 4 and 8 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: The microthreads might facilitate more coronal bone-implant contact due to increased surface areas at an early healing phase; however, they did not significantly affect coronal bone healing at 8 weeks.

Evaluation of a Reverse-Tapered Design on the Osseointegration of Narrow-Diameter Implants in Beagle Dogs: A Pilot Study.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate a reverse-tapered design on the osseointegration of narrow-diameter implants in comparison with a conventional tapered design in beagle dogs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All mandibular premolars and first molars were extracted bilaterally in four beagle dogs. Three months later, three kinds of implants were placed in both quadrants of the mandible: tapered narrow-diameter implants processed by cold working (TNC; n = 8), reverse-tapered narrow-diameter implants (RTN; n = 8), and reverse-tapered narrow-diameter implants processed by cold working (RTNC; n = 8). The animals were sacrificed at 4 weeks. Implant stability quotient (ISQ) values were measured at the time of implant placement and sacrifice. Histomorphometric analysis was performed. RESULTS: The baseline ISQ values were significantly lower in the RTN (56.0 ± 11.6) and RTNC (57.2 ± 9.8) than in the TNC (68.0 ± 5.4; P = .021). At 4 weeks, the TNC (69.9 ± 5.1) exhibited significantly higher ISQ values compared with the RTNC (61.6 ± 4.1; P = .024). Histologic analysis in the RTN and RTNC revealed osseointegration without any signs of inflammation; however, unresolved coronal gap or dehiscence was also observed. The total bone-to-implant contact ratios (BIC) in TNC, RTN, and RTNC were 55.1% ± 11.5%, 47.8% ± 19.1%, and 60.2% ± 15.3%, respectively, and no significant differences were shown among them. The BIC for the coronal part in each group was 51.1% ± 29.4%, 28.8% ± 33.8%, and 23.9% ± 23.3%, respectively, and the differences were not significant. In the threaded part, TNC, RTN, and RTNC showed a BIC of 56.3% ± 9.6%, 50.7% ± 18.3%, and 65.3% ± 15.6%, respectively. There was no significant difference among them. CONCLUSION: The reverse-tapered design on narrow-diameter implants showed a lower initial stability than the conventional tapered design; however, there was equivalent osseointegration in an early healing phase.

Effects of Collagen Grafting on Cell Behaviors in BCP Scaffold with Interconnected Pore Structure.

BACKGROUND: This study was to investigate the effect of collagen grafted porous biphasic calcium phosphate (BCP) on cell attachment, proliferation, and differentiation. Porous BCP scaffolds with interconnected micropore structure were prepared with were prepared and then grafted with a collagen type I. The hydroxyapatite (HA) and ß-tricalcium phosphate (TCP) ratio of the TCP scaffolds was about 60/40 and the collagen was crosslinked on the TCP scaffold surface (collagen-TCP). RESULTS: The sintered BCP scaffolds showed fully interconnected micropore structures with submicron-sized grains. The collagen crosslinking in the scaffolds was conducted using the the N-(3-Dimethylaminopropyl)-N'-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride and N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) crosslinking method. The cell proliferation of collagen-BCP scaffolds showed a similar result to that of the BCP scaffolds. However, osteoblastic differentiation and cell attachment increased in the collagen-BCP scaffolds. CONCLUSIONS: Collagen-BCP scaffold improved the cell attachment ability in early phase and osteoblastic differentiation.