The Possible Association Among Bone Density Values, Resonance Frequency Measurements, Tactile Sense, and Histomorphometric Evaluations of Dental Implant Osteotomy Sites: A Preliminary Study

Purpose: The aim of the clinical preliminary trial was to determine the possible relationship among radiologic bone density, primary implant stability, and tactile sense measurements, and to clarify their possible association with histological measurements at endosseous implant osteotomy sites. Materials: Eleven mandibular and 12 maxillary sites of 10 patients were included. Computerized tomography was used for preoperative evaluation of the jaw-bone for each dental implant site, and bone densities were recorded in Hounsfield units (HU). Implant stability quotients (ISQ) were determined with the Osstell Mentor device. Bone core biopsies were taken from the implant osteotomy sites, where the tactile sense of the practitioner while placing the implants was also recorded. Results: The average radiologic bone density, primary implant stability, and trabecular bone volume (TBV) values were 554.87 HU, 72 ISQ, and 41 % for 23 dental implants, respectively. Maxillary sites presented a statistically significant decrease HU values compared with sites in the mandible. The mean TBV in mandibles presented a trend of increase compared to maxillary sites. A significant correlation was noted between ISQ values and tactile sense for male patients, where HU values demonstrated significant correlations among ISQ values, TBV measurements, and tactile sense evaluations in women. Conclusions: The results of this study demonstrated that computerized tomography measurements in terms of HU evaluations may be a helpful technique for predicting primary stability of the implant and bone quality. Further studies should be performed to understand the relationship between clinical assessments and histological evaluations in implant osteotomy sites in humans. (Implant Dent 2009;18:316-325)