Calcium Phosphate Coating Improves Implant Outcomes

Calcium Phosphate Coating Improves Implant Outcomes

Osseointegration is a process by which dental implant abutments fuse to the jawbone, creating the foundation for successful long-term outcomes. While the majority of implant cases succeed, systemic health problems, including osteoporosis, can interfere with the bone-healing process. In the United States, 40% to 70% of post-menopausal women experience osteoporosis, or a significant decrease in bone density. And as more older adults choose restorative implants, the high rate of osteoporosis becomes problematic as the resulting bone loss interferes with the bone healing necessary to ensure implants’ viability.

To improve implant therapy outcomes among patients with osteoporosis, Dutch researchers investigated the benefits of applying a calcium phosphate (CaP) coating to cylindrical, titanium implant abutments. The team studied peri-implant bone responses to implants in both healthy subjects and those with osteoporosis, publishing their paper, “Calcium-Phosphate-Coated Oral Implants Promote Osseointegration in Osteoporosis,” online in September in the Journal of Dental Research. In the study, 24 rats (11 healthy specimens and 13 with medically induced osteoporosis) received either a noncoated or CaP-coated, grit-blasted, 2 mm titanium implant abutment. At 8 weeks post-procedure, the rats with osteoporosis that received the noncoated implants demonstrated greater reductions in both bone volume and histomorphometric measurement of bone area than healthy rats that also had received noncoated implants.

Implant fixation rates improved among the two specimen groups (rats with osteoporosis and healthy rats) that received the CaP-coated implants. The CaP-coated implants also increased bone-to-implant contact compared to the noncoated implants. This led researchers to conclude that implants coated with a thin layer of CaP improve bone osseointegration under healthy and osteoporotic circumstances.

Hygiene Connection E-Newsletter

November 2013