Abstract
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the clinical and radiographic findings obtained by using amniotic membrane (AM) to cover nano-hydroxyapatite (nHA) bone grafts coated with platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) and thereby evaluate the osseointegration of posterior mandibular implants inserted simultaneously during alveolar piezoelectric ridge splitting technique (RST). METHODS: A prospective cohort study was implemented with thirty patients who had a narrow posterior mandibular alveolar ridge and required implant restoration. Patients were distributed randomly into three groups (group I treated by piezoelectric RST and immediate implant insertion, augmented by the nHA bone graft only; group II treated by piezoelectric RST augmented by nHA bone graft and covered by AM; while group III was treated by piezoelectric RST augmented with PRF and nHA graft and covered by AM). Patients were evaluated clinically to assess the implant stability quotient (ISQ) and radiographically to assess horizontal ridge dimension, crestal bone level (CBL), and bone densitometric (BD) parameters. RESULTS: ISQ results showed a non-significant clinical difference between groups while CBL values showed a high statistically significant difference over the 12-month interval when comparing groups III and II with group I. BD outcomes showed statistically significant differences at all intervals in comparisons of group III with groups I and II. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that concomitant use of PRF with nHA graft covered with AM for augmentation around the dental implant in a narrow posterior mandible after piezoelectric alveolar ridge splitting accelerate osseointegration and significantly increase bone density around the osseointegrated implant and decrease bone resorption in comparison to that achieved with the graft alone.