New Chemical Surface Improves Compatibility of Dental Implants

Dental implants have offered a successful way to restore teeth for more than 20 years. New challenges for improving the process include shortening the time to restore functionality and meeting aesthetic demands. Altering implant surfaces to help promote bone integration is one solution. SLActive, a new chemically-modified surface for titanium, the standard material of which implants are constructed, has shown positive results in this area.

An article in the August issue of the Journal of Oral Implantology reports a 98.2% success rate for SLActive at dental patients’ one-year follow-up. A noninterventional study was conducted to compare these results with previous findings of high survival and success rates among the same type of implants in a controlled clinical trial.

In this noninterventional study, results were obtained under common dental practice conditions where patient selection was not restrictive and technique was not controlled.

Thirty dental clinics in Italy participated, and 226 patients were treated. Patients presented with a variety of risk factors, and both early (48 hours to 3 months) and traditional (3 to 6 months) loading of the implant was performed.

Osseointegration—the connection between living bone and artificial implant—can determine stability of the implant over time. Surface properties of the titanium implant, such as topography and roughness, can assist the chemical and biological interface that occurs in the early stages of healing and thus influence the long-term outcome.

The 98.2% success rate of this study was similar to that reported in formal clinical trials. The high success rate in both studies shows that the SLActive implant surface can be safely used with consistent, predictable results. Patients can expect integration of their implants that restores functionality for chewing and speech as well as aesthetics.

About Journal of Oral Implantology

The Journal of Oral Implantology is the official publication of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry and of the American Academy of Implant Prosthodontics. It is dedicated to providing valuable information to general dentists, oral surgeons, prosthodontists, periodontists, scientists, clinicians, laboratory owners and technicians, manufacturers, and educators. The JOI distinguishes itself as the first and oldest journal in the world devoted exclusively to implant dentistry.