A 24-Week Prospective Study Comparing the Stability of Titanium Dioxide Grit-Blasted Dental Implants With and Without Fluoride Treatment

Purpose: Implant stability has been identified as a factor that may influence the achievement of osseointegration. The aim of this study was to compare the stability of titanium dioxide grit-blasted (TB) dental implants, with fluoride treatment (FTB) and without, over the first 24 weeks following implant placement. Materials and Methods: Subjects were edentulous patients visiting a university prosthodontics department over a 6-month period seeking mandibular overdentures retained by two implants. Each patient received two implants in the mandible: one TB and one FTB. All implants were placed by the same surgeon. TB implants were placed in the right canine region and FTB implants were placed in the left canine region. Resonance frequency analysis (RFA) was performed at the time of implant placement and at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, and 24 weeks postplacement. Results: Twenty-seven patients were enrolled. TB implants showed fluctuations in RFA values during the first 6 weeks, whereas the RFA values of FTB implants remained stable throughout the study period. Conclusions: FTB implants did not exhibit the early decreases in RFA values seen in TB implants. Larger studies are necessary to confirm this finding and determine whether this will affect clinical loading protocols. Keywords: fluoride, implant stability, implant surfaces, resonance frequency analysis