PROTEIN PROMISES LESS SURGERY FOR IMPLANT CASES
PROTEIN PROMISES LESS SURGERY FOR IMPLANT CASES Making dental implant therapy work requires a balanced approach of skills among the dental team, including the efforts of a dental hygienist to ward off bacteria induced inflammation that can lead to bone
PROTEIN PROMISES LESS SURGERY FOR IMPLANT CASES
Making dental implant therapy work requires a balanced approach of skills among the dental team, including the efforts of a dental hygienist to ward off bacteria-induced inflammation that can lead to bone loss and, ultimately, result in implant failure. To dial down the risk of bone loss, a group of researchers has found that a powerful protein can be placed at implant sites to boost bone growth.
Studies to learn about bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) were conducted using an animal model at Georgia Health Science University (GHSU). These studies, which compared growth rates over a 4-week period, demonstrated BMP can be implanted in the sinus where it causes bone to grow at higher rates than what is normally achieved by conventional bone grafting.
Study leader Ulf M.E. Wikesjo, DDS, DMD, PhD, interim associate dean for research and enterprise, GHSU College of Dental Medicine, notes the performance of BMP implies better chances of success for future implant cases. Following implant surgery, some bone thinning is not uncommon and, historically, bone grafts have been used to stabilize the base of the implant. As Wikesjo points out, acquiring bone for grafts requires additional surgeries for implant cases, making the technique more problematic than the BMP treatment method.
Wikesjo characterizes BMP’s performance in the study as “phenomenal, and says it is an off-the-shelf product that is easy to use and which produces real results. “It could become the new gold standard for this procedure,” he adds.
As older dental patients look to extend the function of their dentition, the prevalence of implant therapy is likely to expand. Greater demand will also put downward pressure on the cost of implant placement, which is likely to make implant therapy more common in the future. As implant cases ramp up, approaches that require fewer surgeries and increase placement success rates—such as those achieved by the BMP trial—suggest patients can look forward to increasingly favorable outcomes.
Source: Georgia Health Sciences University
