Abstract
During the placement of titanium implants into bone, particles are loosened and translocated as a result of the inherent roughness of the surface. Such bone particles have been shown to play a significant role in new bone formation. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to establish a new regenerative procedure, which can be implemented immediately during surgery, to provide implants with additional autogenous bone particles. Thereafter, we investigated the effect of such ‘bone‐coated’ implants on the healing response. In our model, dental screw‐type implants were placed in the iliac crests of goats, following three approaches: (a) implants were placed, then removed while retaining bone debris on the surface, and subsequently placed into freshly prepared holes; (b) new implants were installed in the donor sites from group 1; and (c) control implants were inserted according to the standard protocol. After 3 weeks, microcomputed tomography and histomorphometerical analyses on bone–implant contact (BIC) and bone area (BA) were performed. The results showed that the retained bone debris in group 1 was viable bone‐like tissue when cultured in vitro. In vivo histological results showed a significantly higher BIC for the ‘bone‐coated’ (43.42 ± 11.29%) compared to the control (28.15 ± 11.86%) implants. Also, adjacent to the implants a significantly higher BA was found for ‘bone‐coated’ implants (39.51 ± 11.17%) compared to the controls (31.92 ± 10.25%). Notably, no detrimental effects were noticed for the ‘donor‐site’ positions. In conclusion, the transported autogenous bone particles accelerated peri‐implant osteogenesis. Clinical studies are needed to evaluate the potential of this procedure in clinical practice. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.