Association between soft-tissue thickness and early marginal bone loss around mandibular dental implants

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the association between soft-tissue thickness and crestal bone resorption over ۱۲ months in patients receiving mandibular dental implants.Methods: This retrospective study analyzed the records of ۶۶ patients (۳۳ males and ۳۳ females; mean age, ۳۷.۴۱ ± ۶.۲۳ years) who received ۶۶ bone-level implants in the mandible between June ۲۰۲۱ and February ۲۰۲۳. Soft tissue thickness was measured intraoperatively using a standardized periodontal probe technique, and patients were categorized into thin (≤ ۲.۰ mm) and thick (> ۲.۰ mm) soft-tissue groups. Peri-implant marginal bone loss was measured on standardized periapical radiographs after ۱۲ months. Associations between marginal bone loss and soft-tissue thickness, sex, implant diameter, and implant location were evaluated. Data were analyzed using the chi-square and Mann-Whitney U tests (α = ۰.۰۵).Results: Thirty-five patients (۵۳%) had thin soft tissue, whereas ۳۱ (۴۷%) had thick soft tissue. The thin-tissue group showed slightly greater marginal bone loss than the thick-tissue group (۰.۲۴ ± ۰.۱۷ vs. ۰.۱۹ ± ۰.۱۷ mm, respectively), although this difference was not statistically significant (P = ۰.۲۲۸). No significant associations were found between marginal bone loss and sex (P = ۰.۰۷۸), implant diameter (P = ۰.۸۷۱), or implant location (P = ۰.۴۳۳). Conclusions: Soft-tissue thickness at the implant site was not significantly associated with early marginal bone loss around mandibular implants over the ۱۲-month follow-up period. These findings suggest that, under the conditions of this study, soft-tissue thickness alone may not be a major determinant of early marginal bone stability.

کلیدواژه ها:

alveolar bone loss ، Bone-implant interface ، Dental implants ، Mandible ، peri-implant tissues ، Soft Tissue