Predictable crestal bone remodelling around two porous-coated titanium alloy dental implant designs. A radiographic study in dogs.

We have previously suggested that altering the height of the porous-coat segment of a partially porous-coated TiAl6V4 endosseous dental implant would affect the degree of crestal bone loss occurring during implant function by changing the patterns of stress transfer. This conclusion arose from the analysis of data from several different experiments and lacked a direct intra-animal comparison. In the present study we have compared two implant designs varying only in the extent to which they were porous-coated. With one design (type A) the coronal 1.8 mm of the implant root had a machined surface while the remainder of its length was porous-coated with TiAl6V4 beads. The other design (type B) had all but the coronal-most 0.75 mm porous-coated. Two implants of each type were placed in each of 4 dogs and the sites allowed to heal for 4 weeks before re-entry and prosthesis attachment. Monthly the implant-supported bridges were removed and radiographs exposed of each implant using a special film holder connected separately to each implant. These radiographs were analyzed for crestal bone loss using both direct visual and computer-assisted techniques. The results showed that bone remodelled to the machined surface-to-porous coat junction for type B implants and achieved a steady state by 12 weeks of function, whereas a longer time was required to achieve this state with type A implants. Significantly more bone loss occurred with the type A design, and this difference was detectable as early as after the first month of function.