Association between oral bisphosphonate use and dental implant failure among middle-aged women

To investigate the association between the use of oral bisphosphonate therapy and dental implant failure.

The case-control study involved 337 female patients, aged 40 years and older, who had 1181 implants placed at the Department of Periodontology and Implant Dentistry at New York University College of Dentistry between January 1997 and December 2004. Cases, defined as women with one or more implant failures, were identified from the departmental database. Controls were then randomly selected for each case. Adjusted odds ratios were estimated using logistic regression models fitted through generalized estimating equations.

After adjusting for selected covariates, the odds of oral bisphosphonate use was 2.69 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.49-4.86) times higher in women for whom implants failed compared with those for whom implants did not fail. Although no significant interaction was observed (p = 0.41), the stratified analyses suggest that the association between oral bisphosphonate use and dental implant failure was stronger in the maxilla (Odds Ratio [OR] = 2.60; 95% CI, 1.36-4.96) than in the mandible (OR = 1.38; 95% CI, 0.51-3.73).

Findings from this study suggest that dental practitioners should be aware of the increased risk of implant failure associated with oral bisphosphonate use in the population.