Purpose: To evaluate the crestal bone loss and implant stability quotient trends of photofunctionalised versus untreated implants.
Materials and methods: A total of 34 patients (age 46.94 ± 12.03 years) with bilateral single missing teeth in the same arch were enrolled in this study. Each patient received an untreated implant on one side (control group, n = 34) and a photofunctionalised implant on the contralateral side (test group, n = 34). Crestal bone loss was assessed at the time of crown insertion and 1 year later. The osseointegration speed index was evaluated for both the control and test group. An independent t test was used for intergroup comparisons of crestal bone loss and osseointegration speed index. Bivariate analysis was performed for the confounding variables.
Results: The test group showed a statistically significantly higher osseointegration speed index (3.07) as compared to the control group (1.29) (P < 0.01). Statistically significantly higher crestal bone loss was observed in the control group (−0.57 ± 0.41 mm) as compared to the test group (−0.27 ± 0.35 mm) (P < 0.01). The difference between mean Plaque Index and Bleeding Index in the control (0.74/0.38) and test group (0.73/0.35) was statistically insignificant (P > 0.05). A negative correlation (r = −0.272) was noted between implant diameter and crestal bone loss. A positive correlation (r = 0.402) was observed between implant length and osseointegration speed index.
Conclusion: Implants with photofunctionalised surfaces reduce overall healing time and crestal bone loss. Photofunctionalisation is an effective aid for chairside conditioning of implant surfaces to achieve faster osseointegration with good crestal bone stability.