A longitudinal study on peri-implant bone changes in elderly patients with systemic complications

Abstract

Objective: The present study radiographically assessed the maintenance of osseointegration in adult patients with mean age of 55.3 years, with dental implants and respective prosthetic implants. Subjects and method: Therefore, periapical radiographs were taken of 36 implants installed in 11 patients for the calculation of the marginal bone level (mesial and distal), using the software Image™ Toll (in pixels). Negative difference greater than 0.01 pixels between the initial measurement and after 1 year was considered bone loss. The average age of patients in the study was compared to mesial and distal peri-implant bone loss, using the “t” test. The association between bone loss, gender, presence of osteoporosis, thyroid disease, smoking, alcoholism, and bruxism were tested by chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test. Results: dsMeasurements of distal osseointegration observed on radiographs showed peri-implant bone loss in 19 implants (53%), while the mesial peri-implant bone loss was found in 17 implants (47%). Patients with distal bone loss had lower average age (52.1±6.27 years) than those without distal loss (58.5±10.26 years) (p = 0.0576). Conclusion: It was observed that increasing age is inversely related to peri-implant bone loss. Patients with good systemic health, even with advanced age, are candidates for implants.