Evaluation of a novel dog animal model for peri-implant disease: clinical, radiographic, microbiological and histological assessment.

Objective: To assess longitudinal peri-implant tissue evaluation in a plaque compromised ligature free dog model, clinically, radiographically, microbiologically and histologically.

Materials And Methods: Six beagle mandibular premolars and first molars were extracted. Plaque accumulated for 16 weeks. Two implants were placed per hemi-mandible. For 17 weeks, control implants (CI) in one hemi-mandible were brushed daily; test implants (TI) in the other were not. These parameters were then assessed: clinically, probing depth (PD), bleeding-on-probing (BOP), presence of plaque (PP) and clinical attachment level (CAL); radiographically, marginal bone level; microbiologically, counts for Streptococcus spp., Fusobacterium spp., Porphyromonas gingivalis, Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Prevotella intermedia and total bacterial load. At week 17, histomorphometric analysis was performed (MM-ISH (mucosal margin-implant shoulder); ISH-fBIC (implant shoulder-first bone-to-implant contact); MM-aJE (mucosal margin-apical area junctional epithelium); MM-aINF (mucosal margin-apical limit of the inflammatory infiltrate); %INF (percentage of inflammatory infiltrate)).

Results: At week 17, TI had significant increased PD, BOP, PP and CAL versus baseline. All clinical variables presented intergroup differences. There was no intergroup difference for radiographic bone loss (p > 0.05). Total bacteria, Fusobacterium spp., A. actinomycetemcomitans and P. gingivalis had intergroup differences. There was no statistically significant intergroup difference for ISH-fBIC.

Conclusions: Longitudinal microbiology evaluation detected a shift period. Final intergroup microbiological differences were the basis of W17 clinical intergroup differences, with higher values in TI. Microbiological and clinical changes detected in peri-implant tissues were compatible with onset of peri-implant disease. Despite histological inflammatory intergroup difference, no histological or radiographic intergroup bone loss was detected.

Clinical Relevance: This study set-up describes a valuable method for generating "true" early peri-implant defects without mechanical trauma.