Bone healing around dental implants: Simplified vs conventional drilling protocols at speed of 400 rpm

Purpose: This study evaluated whether simplified drilling protocols would provide comparable histologic and histomorphometric results to conventional drilling protocols at a low rotational speed. Materials and Methods: A total of 48 alumina-blasted and acid-etched Ti-6Al-4V implants with two diameters (3.75 and 4.2 mm, n = 24 per group) were bilaterally placed in the tibiae of 12 dogs, under a low-speed protocol (400 rpm). Within the same diameter group, half of the implants were inserted after a simplified drilling procedure (pilot drill + final diameter drill), and the other half were placed using the conventional drilling procedure. After 3 and 5 weeks, the animals were euthanized, and the retrieved bone-implant samples were subjected to nondecalcified histologic sectioning. Histomorphology, bone-to-implant contact (BIC), and bone area fraction occupancy (BAFO) analysis were performed. Results: Histology showed that new bone was formed around implants, and inflammation or bone resorption was not evident for both groups. Histomorphometrically, when all independent variables were collapsed over drilling technique, no differences were detected for BIC and BAFO; when drilling technique was analyzed as a function of time, the conventional groups reached statistically higher BIC and BAFO at 3 weeks, but comparable values between techniques were observed at 5 weeks; 4.2-mm implants obtained statistically higher BAFO relative to 3.75-mm implants. Conclusion: Based on the present methodology, the conventional technique improved bone formation at 3 weeks, and narrower implants were associated with less bone formation.