Alveolar bone density changes around miniscrews: a prospective clinical study.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Our objective was to assess the effects of miniscrews on interproximal alveolar bone density and adjacent gingival tissue health. METHODS: Forty-four titanium miniscrews were inserted between maxillary second premolars and first molars on both sides of the dentition in 22 consecutive patients (15 female, 7 male; ages, 14-24 years). A control area (between the maxillary first and second premolars) was also assessed. Both miniscrew (study) and control areas were monitored clinically and radiographically at different time points before insertion of the miniscrews and at 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months after insertion. Software associated with a digital intraoral radiography machine was used to assess changes in alveolar bone density. Clinical gingival parameters of the study and control areas were also recorded. A repeated-measures analysis of variance and the Bonferroni post-hoc pairwise comparison tests were used to assess the changes at the different time points. RESULTS: Thirty-nine miniscrews were successful for the study duration. Male subjects had significantly (P <0.001) higher alveolar bone density than did the females at baseline. Alveolar bone density around the miniscrews increased significantly (P <0.001) between 3 and 6 months after insertion upon loading. Alveolar bone density of the control area did not change significantly during the experiment (P >0.05). The width of keratinized gingiva increased significantly (P <0.001) in the study and control areas after insertion of miniscrews and remained with no significant change throughout the study. CONCLUSIONS: Miniscrews increased the alveolar bone density significantly after 3 months of insertion and were not associated with detrimental effects on the adjacent gingival tissues.