Research Project
3495159
At a (June 1988) NIH Consensus Development Conference on Dental Implants, it was reported that, during the period 1983 to 1987, the number of dental implants inserted in the U.S. increased fourfold and the number of practitioners performing implants increased tenfold. Furthermore, it was estimated that 300,000 or more dental implants will be used in the U.S. by 1992. Osseointegration, particularly in two stage root form implants, has been shown to result in excellent performance of dental implants. However, achieving osseointegration often requires extensive periods of time (one year) with the implant out of function. With early functional restoration, osseointegration is often never achieved. The long term objective of this work is to develop a non-invasive treatment modality that can be used to enhance osseointegration by either reducing the time to achieve it or by providing predictable bone augmentation. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing resonant electromagnetic fields to stimulate osteogenesis and thereby enhance dental implant osseointegration. Using a canine transcortical model, animals will be placed in aligned static and time varying magnetic fields for periods of three and six weeks. While it would be preferable to utilize an edentulous mandible model, given the time and budgeting constraints the transcortical model is more appropriate for demonstration of feasibility. The conditions on the field will be set to stimulate the transport across cell membranes of specific ions. The osseointegration potential of the resonant electromagnetic field treatment will be studied utilizing attachment strength and histology of the interface in the treated limbs as compared to the untreated control limbs.
