Finite element analysis of mono- and bicortical mini-implant stability

Loosening and loss rates of monocortical mini-implants are relatively high, therefore the following null hypothesis was tested: 'The local bone stress in mono and bicortically-anchored mini-implants is identical'.

Anisotropic Finite Element Method (FEM) models of the mandibular bone, including teeth, periodontal ligaments, orthodontic braces, and mini-implants of varying length, were created. The morphology was based on the Computed Tomography data of an anatomical preparation. All mini-implants with varying insertion depths (monocortical short, monocortical long, bicortical) were typically loaded, and the induced effective stress was calculated in the cervical area of the cortical bone. The obtained values were subsequently analysed descriptively and exploratively using the SPSS 19.0 software.

The null hypothesis was rejected, since the stress values of each anchorage type differed significantly (Kruskal-Wallis Test, P < 0.001). Therefore, the lowest effective stress values were induced in bicortical anchorage (mean = 0.65MPa, SD = 0.06MPa) and the highest were induced in monocortical (short) anchorage of the mini-implants (mean = 1.79MPa, SD = 0.29MPa). The Spearman rank correlation was 0.821 (P < 0.001).

The deeper the mini-implant was anchored, the lower were the effective stress values in the cervical region of the cortical bone. Bicortical implant anchorage is biomechanically more favourable than monocortical anchorage; therefore, bicortical anchorage should be especially considered in challenging clinical situations requiring heavy anchorage.