CLSM Analyzes and Ultramorphological Surface Pattern of Mucosal Titanium Implant Interfaces

Surface topography and chemical composition of mucosal-implant interfaces is thougt to be critical to their clinical success. The aim of our study was to investigate the topography and chemical composition of titanium mucosal-implant interfaces using surface analytical techniques. The mucosal surface compartments of 10 different implant systems were utilized as a test area. The ultramorphological analyzes were carried out using Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Metastable Induced Electron Spectroscopy (MIES), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Scanning Force Microscopy (SFM). The surfaces of samples showed different fracturing of metal chips and pitting attack. From the CLSM- and SEM analyzes in comparison to the Developed Surface Area (DSA) as ratio of microroughnesses it appears that the diameter of the pits varied in the range of 0,1 to 10 µm. MIES showed the presence of Ti, O and C. Several peaks pertaining to titanium and oxygen can be found. The Ti-surface is covered by a 3-5 nm thick TiO2 layer. Only titanium in the oxidic, not in the metallic state is found within the observation depth of 10 Ångstroms. We find clear evidence from MIES that saturated hydrocarbon chains form the outermost molecular layer. Virtually no signal from TiO2 is found at the very surface. The results suggest a two-layer structure for the passive film formed on titanium after exposition to the sulcus crevicular fluid. The inner layer has a structure close to TiO2, while the outlayer is dominated by CH2-groups with a few -C=O groups inside the hydrocarbon overlayer. The granular structure observed on mucosal-implant surfaces seems to indicate that the dissolution occurs at localized defects in the passive film influencing the barrier function of implanto-gingival tissues. This was confirmed by the DSA as a hybrid parameter including both spatial and amplitude aspects of the surfaces. Keywords: Ti-Surface topography, Ti-chemical composition, mucosal-implant interfaces, ultramorphological analyzes, Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Metastable Induced Electron Spectroscopy (MIES), Scanning Electron