Abstract
PURPOSE: We examined the progression of experimental peri-implantitis in sites that underwent either alveolar ridge preservation (ARP) or spontaneous healing (SH), comparing infected teeth (IT) and non-infected teeth (NIT). This investigation is a secondary analysis of a preclinical study aimed at exploring the correlation between newly formed bone and implant stability quotient (ISQ), as well as the association between newly formed bone and the progression of experimental peri-implantitis. METHODS: The bilateral mandibular third or fourth premolars of 6 beagle dogs were randomly assigned to 4 groups: IT/SH, IT/ARP, NIT/SH, and NIT/ARP. Following implant placement, core biopsies were retrieved from each site, and the ISQ value was measured. A 3-month period was allowed for peri-implantitis induction, followed by an additional 3 months for the spontaneous progression of peri-implantitis, with radiographs taken at each time point. RESULTS: During the spontaneous progression of peri-implantitis, no statistically significant differences were observed among the groups in terms of mean ISQ values and radiographic marginal bone loss. Similarly, the percentages of bone substitute, newly formed bone, and fibrovascular connective tissue in core biopsies did not differ significantly among the groups. Linear regression analysis revealed no significant linear correlation between newly formed bone and ISQ in any group (P>0.05). However, a weak linear correlation between newly formed bone and marginal bone loss during the spontaneous progression of peri-implantitis was noted in the IT/SH group alone (P=0.036). CONCLUSIONS: Within the limitations of this study, we were unable to demonstrate that ARP could improve newly formed bone or primary implant stability. Furthermore, neither ARP nor SH significantly influenced the spontaneous progression of experimental peri-implantitis.