Background and Aim
Bone regeneration procedures are often evaluated based on biologic
aspects only. As regenerated bone also has to ensure primary implant
stability, the goal of this study was to determine the mechanical quality
of regenerated bone.
Methods and Materials
Six adult minipigs were allocated for this experiment with four
mandibular study sites each established following tooth removal. Two
different types of bovine bone mineral as well as autogenous bone were
used for augmenting three-walled defects while native bone served as
control. Implants were installed after 12, 18 and 24 weeks of healing and
bone quality was determined using intraoperative compressive testing
(BoneProbe), insertion torque measurements and resonance frequency
analysis. The mandibles were then harvested for determining bone
mineral density (BMD) and bone to implant contact (BIC). Statistical
analysis was based on two way analysis of variance of aligned rank
transformed data and Spearman’s rank correlation tests (α=0.05).
Results
The effects of the factors healing time and material on the parameters
tested were too small to be significant (p ranging from 0.34 to 0.98).
Weak correlations were observed for implant insertion torque with
BoneProbe measurements in the cortical (0.481; p=0.032) and in the
trabecular area (0.639; p=0.002). BoneProbe measurements in the
trabecular part and in the cortical part also correlated with each other
(0.477; p=0.035).
Conclusion
While differences may exist between bone regenerated using different
biomaterials with respect to biologic behavior, differences in the
mechanical properties determining primary implant stability seem to be
minor. Implant insertion torque measurements appear being a reliable
tool for determining bone quality if only one specific implant type is
considered.

A pilot animal study aimed at assessing the mechanical quality of regenerated alveolar bone

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